Turnout for local election: 16.3 percent

Photo by Tom Rivers: These spots offered some privacy for voters to fill out their ballots at Hoag Library on Tuesday.

It was a fairly light turnout for the local elections in Orleans County with 16.3 percent of registered voters casting ballots in the county.

There are 25,777 registered voters in Orleans County, and 4,189 voted either on Tuesday, through nine days of early voting or through absentee ballots.

There were only a few contested races in the county. This will likely be the last time the local elections will be held on an off year without the draw of a gubernatorial or presidential election. The state has pushed for most of the local elections to align on an even year when there is a bigger turnout for high-profile elections.

The presidential race in 2024 brought out 17,780 voters in Orleans County, more than four times the turnout in the latest election.

Many of the positions up for election on Tuesday will be back on the ballot in either 2026 or 2028. The terms were adjusted from two years to one year, or four years to three years so they will be up for election on even years in the future.

Among the 25,777 registered voters in the county, the enrollment by party includes 12,471 as Republicans, 5,070 as Democrats, 661 as Conservatives, 145 in the Working Families, and 947 in “other.” There are also 6,483 unaffiliated or “blanks.”