Contact:
Warren Slocum, Chief Elections Officer
Phone: (650) 363-4988 E-mail: wslocum@smcare.org

Alternate:
Carol Marks, Communications Director
Phone: (650) 599-1015 E-mail: cmarks@smcare.org

Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Statement of the Vote Certified
Turnout of 59.29% far exceeds 2004 Presidential Primary; more than 45 percent Vote by Mail

Redwood City, CA – San Mateo County Chief Elections Officer Warren Slocum certified the Statement of the Vote today for the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Election, marking the completion of the vote count and a voter turnout of 59.29 percent.

The 59.29 percent turnout for San Mateo County far exceeded the 48.61 percent turnout seen in the 2004 Presidential Primary Election. It also surpassed the 55.12 percent turnout for the Statewide Special Election in Nov. 2005, and the 57.49 percent turnout for the 2000 Presidential Primary Election.

There were 357,075 registered voters in San Mateo County eligible to vote in the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary; 211,697 voted.

“This was an historic election that drew much interest from voters, and that is reflected in the highest voter turnout we’ve had for a primary this century. The diversity of contenders for each political party’s presidential nominee was unprecedented,” Slocum said. “I commend the nearly 212,000 registered voters in San Mateo County who took the very important step of making their choices heard on Feb. 5.”

Though notably high, the turnout on Feb. 5 was not a record for San Mateo County, as some had predicted. Presidential Primary turnout has not exceeded 60 percent since 1980.

The Statement of the Vote also shows the continuing upward trend in Vote by Mail, with close to one out of every two votes cast via mail for the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Election. Of those who voted, 45.31 percent – 95,928 – cast their ballot through the mail. The percentage of voters choosing to vote by mail has increased in every major election since the state opened Vote by Mail up to everyone in 2002.

“Vote by Mail has become an increasingly convenient option for voters looking to fit voting into their busy lives,” Slocum said. “Vote by Mail voters have become a force too large to ignore.”

The Statement of the Vote is the final step in the Official Canvass of the Vote in the 28-day period following Election Day. The Canvass also requires a manual hand count of one percent of the precincts, selected at random. All votes, whether cast on eSlates or paper ballots, are tallied by machines after the polls close.

“We were very pleased – and not surprised - to find that the manual tally results compared to the machine tally results matched exactly,” Warren said. “Voters can be assured that their votes are being counted as they intend.”

A 150-page document, the Statement of the Vote certifies election results and accounts for every vote cast in the election. It breaks down the vote in great detail for each contest, parsing out the numbers by such categories as precinct, city, political district or Vote by Mail voting. The Statement of the Vote is set to be approved by the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors at their meeting on March 11, and will be sent to California Secretary of State Debra Bowen to be compiled into the official statewide Statement of the Vote. Bowen will release California’s Statement of the Vote by March 17.

To access the Statement of the Vote for the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary Election, go to

www.shapethefuture.org/elections/results/feb2008/documents/SOV_feb08.pdf.