Cape County turnout near 40 percent

Voter turnout in Cape Girardeau County on Tuesday far exceeded that of any previous presidential primary, with more than 11,000 Republicans and close to 8,000 Democrats casting ballots. Just under 40 percent of county voters went to the polls.

The previous highs had been set in 2000 for the GOP, when then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush defeated U.S. Sen. John McCain and nearly 7,500 votes were tallied. For the Democrats, the high point came in 2004, when a little more than 2,500 voters cast ballots in the race between U.S. Sen. John Kerry and U.S. Sen. John Edwards.

The 158th District Missouri House race drew voters to the polls as nearly 8,900 people made selections in the race that was eventually won by former state representative Mary Kasten.

Across Southeast Missouri, vote totals far exceeded those of previous presidential primaries. Vote totals in Bollinger, Perry and Scott counties all surpassed those set in 2000 and 2004.

Republican voters in Bollinger and Scott counties preferred former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, while GOP voters in Cape Girardeau County favored former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and voters in Perry County voted in the largest numbers for Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Democrats in all four counties leaned heavily toward U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton for their party's presidential nomination.

At Westminster Church at Perryville Road and Cape Rock Drive in Cape Girardeau, voter Janet Seib chose Kasten in the special election and Huckabee in the Republican presidential primary. "I think he is more down to earth and knows what the people want and need," she said.

Two Democrats voting at Westminster, Brandon Cramer and Melissa Cramer-McClain, both said they chose Clinton in the presidential balloting and Democrat Mike Keefe in the legislative contest. Keefe was their choice because he was the Democratic nominee, both said.

Even at some of the lighter-voting precincts in the city, election workers reported strong turnout. At Cape Girardeau City Hall, more than 200 voters had cast ballots by 12:30 p.m. -- exceeding the August 2006 total turnout -- and 93 voters had cast their ballots at the House of Hope, more than double the August 2006 turnout.

At city hall, Danny Kirkpatrick cast a vote for Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois in the Democratic presidential primary. "I believe he is the right man for the job," he said.

But Kirkpatrick crossed party lines to vote for Kasten. He chose Kasten, he said, "because she has a name I am familiar with and she's done good work in the past in political office."

At House of Hope, election worker Geneva Robinson said the turnout was exceptional for her precinct. "Usually we wouldn't have had this many the whole day," she said.

rkeller@semissourian.com

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