Oregon ballot returns are depressed going into election day, despite three races that could decide control of the U.S. House.
Voters are selecting their party’s presidential nominee, candidates for the state’s six Congressional districts, dozens of state races, as well as a variety of ballot measures.
There is no gubernatorial election this year.
Though ballots were mailed to voters on May 1, just 19.6 percent had cast their votes by May 20, or 590,290 out of 3,017,724 registered voters, according to a report from the Oregon Secretary of State’s office.
More than one million ballots had come in by this time during the 2022 primary election, a nearly 46.4 percent difference. The final turnout in that cycle was more than 1.1 million, or 37.81 percent.
In the May 2020 primaries, final turnout was 47 percent.
Ballots for the May 21 primary must be postmarked in the vote-by-mail state on Tuesday or turned in at an official ballot drop by 8 p.m. (PT).
The state’s postmark rule, enacted in 2022, allows ballots postmarked on May 21 to be counted for a week. This may delay the results of close races.
Otherwise, the first results can likely be expected within 30 minutes of polls closing.
Voter sentiment expressed at polling places and in various statewide surveys could explain the low turnout so far.
The economy was top of mind for many voters as they delivered their ballots.
Caelen Dora, a young father who cares about pro-life issues, the economy, and the Second Amendment, cast his vote for President Donald Trump.
Mr. Dora began voting at age 18. Today at 26, he is concerned about voter fatigue.
“Our national politics are so polarized,” he told The Epoch Times. “A lot of people who are passionate about certain issues but don’t make politics their whole life are a bit disenchanted at the moment. Everything feels burdensome.”
He is not alone.
In a recent Pew Research Center study, nearly two-thirds of Americans (65 percent) say they always or often feel exhausted when thinking about politics, while 55 percent feel angry.
By contrast, just 10 percent say they always or often feel hopeful about politics, and even fewer (4 percent) are excited.
“The Biden administration has been a dumpster fire,” Trump voter Steven Jhan told The Epoch Times.
An Oregon voter since 2012, his top concerns are jobs and the economy, threats from an open border, and involvement in foreign wars.
“The cost of living is way out of balance,” and that contributes to the homeless crisis, according to Lane County realtor Sherry Blackmon.
“My No. 1 issue is the economy,” she told The Epoch Times.
Ms. Blackmon advocates for universal healthcare, including lowering prescription drug pricing and addressing mental healthcare. She describes herself as “100 percent pro-choice.”
Ms. Blackmon said she “usually votes Democrat” and will vote for President Joe Biden.
“I honestly feel he is too old, but is the lesser of two evils,” she explained. “I would vote Republican if the choice was someone like John Kasich.”
A Marion County Republican said she was concerned about the cost of living and border security.
She is so concerned about polarization that she asked The Epoch Times not to publish her name.
Taxes and government waste motivated the active retiree, who has voted since 1974, to support President Trump.
“I ran my own businesses,” she told The Epoch Times. “I know you can’t spend $2,000 a month if you only bring in $1,000. It’s just common sense.”
Her frustration mirrors those of respondents to a recent poll conducted by the nonpartisan Oregon Values and Belief Center (OVBC) based in Portland.
That survey of more than 5,400 Beaver State residents found that Oregonians are cynical about state politics and open to change.
Almost six in 10 (57 percent) respondents said that “government is almost always wasteful and inefficient,” while only four in 10 (43 percent) agree that “government often does a better job than people give it credit for.”
The report also found that 49 percent of respondents feel their community is on the wrong track, compared with 44 percent who said it was headed in the right direction.
When asked how they feel about the coming year, “52 percent were optimistic and 45 percent were not,” the study said.
They were even less optimistic when asked in what direction the state (41 percent right direction, 53 percent wrong track) and nation (27 percent right direction, 69 percent wrong track) were headed, according to the study.
Concerns about social and political divisions remain top of mind for respondents regardless of their right track/wrong track perceptions and their hopes for 2024.
“Petty mudslinging in political arenas is a depressing waste of time, energy and money,” responded an anonymous Lane County woman described as a white Democrat over the age of 75.
Roughly three out of four respondents (74 percent) think their community is socially and politically divided and 77 percent are worried about these divisions.
“Politicians need to be better about compromising and working across party lines,” wrote a Hispanic Multnomah county male who described himself as a Democrat between the ages of 30–44.
“This pettiness that exists between parties is harmful and not helpful to anyone.”
