Polls not popular

Voters came in trickles rather than droves at a number of Newport

Beach polling places for Tuesday’s special congressional election.

That led to an easy day for poll workers, who reported everything

ran smoothly. Few people in Newport Beach cast ballots to elect a

successor for former Rep. Chris Cox, who resigned in August to chair

the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The ballot was long, listing 17 candidates from five parties, but

voters had only one choice to make. That led to confusion for some

voters, who thought it was the day to decide on eight statewide

ballot issues. Those issues actually won’t be up for a vote until a

Nov. 8 statewide special election.

“They’d stop and they’d say, ‘Wait, wait! I don’t have the rest of

my ballot here,’” said Carol Dru, who was working the polls at St.

Andrew’s Presbyterian Church.

St. Andrew’s had a fairly steady stream of voters throughout the

day, but a little before 5 p.m., the eight voting machines at Newport

Beach City Hall stood empty.

Many people stopped by to drop off absentee ballots, but only

about 80 people had used the machines at City Hall by early evening.

Dru said the voters she saw seemed to have made up their minds

before coming, because they got in and out quickly. But voter Julie

Wilson wasn’t one of those.

“I was actually looking at three candidates in particular, two

Republicans and an independent,” she said.

She said she was concerned about airport issues, the environment

and immigration. Voter Larry Hehr said he had just one main concern.

“I wanted to make sure that the seat that’s been vacated is filled

by a Republican,” he said.

Several people said they were surprised by the low turnout. One of

them was Michael Brewer, the son of Republican candidate and former

Assemblywoman Marilyn Brewer. He came by the polls at the Newport

Beach Chamber of Commerce to see who hadn’t voted yet, so he could

call and remind them.

“Voter turnout is so low it’s almost frightening,” he said.

One reason for that could have been confusion with the November

special election -- Brewer said he talked to someone who thought the

congressional election wasn’t until then.