YAKIMA, Wash. – With just over 24 hours until drop boxes close for the general election, voter turnout in Yakima County remains low. Out of more than 135,000 registered voters, only about 16% of ballots have been received, as of 11 am Monday morning.
This trend of low voter participation is not new for Yakima County. In the last two odd-year elections, which are non-presidential and non-midterm, the county had a 32% turnout in 2021 and a 26% turnout in 2023, the lowest in the state. County Auditor Charles Ross expressed doubts about reaching the 26% mark this year.
“The only reason I think people are not voting is they just don’t want to, they just don’t have the interest in it,” Ross said.
Despite efforts to increase voter registration, the number of ballots received has not kept pace.
“Washington has worked really hard at automatically registering people to vote who are entitled to vote,” he said.
Ross explained that voting behavior in Yakima County typically involves a surge in ballots received in the initial days after they are sent out, followed by a lull, and then another increase as the deadline approaches.
However, some groups within the community are voting at even lower rates than the overall turnout. Ross highlighted the need to engage more with Latino and Native American voters.
“Our Latino voters, they even have a lower percentage of return, which, you know, we’re always working on that and trying to reach out to that community as much as we can,” Ross said. “The Native American community is even less than that. So, we spend quite a bit of time throughout the year working with those communities in particular, and then obviously just voter information at large.”
Ross emphasized the importance of participating in odd-year elections, which have significant local impact.
“These are the races right now that are on the ballot that affect you more than any other ballot cycle we’re going to have, because these are your local neighborhood political leaders that we’re electing, your school board,” Ross said. “If you live within those districts, you know, you really should try to make your voice heard because you’re going to live with the results, one way or the other.”
Ballots can be submitted to any official ballot box by 8:00 p.m. Tuesday. These boxes are available in every town across the county. Visit the County Auditor’s website to find out what’s on the ballot.
