Voters Head to Polls While Campaign Workers Make One Last Push

Turnout at several precincts was slow this morning as voters cast their ballots for several local races.

the next mayor of Chesterfield, city council representatives, directors on the Parkway and Rockwood school boards, a position on the Monarch Fire Protection District Board of Directors and the St. Louis County assessor.

At times, it seemed there were more campaign workers than voters at the polls. Many of them chatted as they waited for opportunities to speak about the candidate they support.

Louise Nation, wife of Ward 4 candidate Bob Nation, said she thought the eight campaign workers she was with outside of the were more respectful of each other than in years' past. Nation and Trish Dillender, wife of Ward 4 candidate Paul Dillender, met for the first time at the polls and were chatting to pass the time. Moments later, Louise Nation joked with Bill Houck, who was campaigning for mayoral candidate Dan Hurt. Houck, an ob-gyn, approached a woman carrying a baby to give her a flier.

"Congrats on the baby," he said.

"I think that's your best one yet," Nation said, laughing at Houck's creative approach to engage a voter.

At , about 40 people had voted by 9 a.m. Mayoral candidate Bruce Geiger made an appearance at about 9 a.m. His wife, Lynne, had been at the precinct all morning. Ward 2 candidate Tania Pappas also stopped by in her minivan that had a large sign with her name on the top of it. 

Both Pappas and Ward 2 candidate Derek Grier were at Shenandoah Valley Elementary School before 10 a.m. The two weren't interacting much as a slow trickle of voters came in. About 60 people had voted there by 10 a.m. The school is the largest precinct in Ward 2, serving about 1,800 voters. 

Turnout for April elections is typically low. 

“Traditionally an April election [turnout] is less than 20 percent,” St. Louis Country Director of Election Joseph Goeke told Town and Country-Manchester Patch. He said there was no reason to believe Tuesday would be any different. Last April, just 6,657 Chesterfield voters cast a ballot for muncipal races.