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The Primary

Submitted by Gene Patterson on May 4, 2006 - 1:31am

Perhaps one of the more interesting aspects of Tuesday's vote was that there wasn't much interest.

Despite weeks of coverage by tv, radio and newspapers, the public, for the most part, stayed home. Of the more than 220,000 registered voters in Knox County..roughly fewer than 30,000 chose to vote.

Some were confused. The issue of term limits and its impact on the August General Election kept many home. Others weren't familiar enough with the write-ins. More than one person said to me that they didn't feel "informed" enough to vote.

But for the vast majority of those who are registered but chose not to exercise their vote, it was simply apathy that kept them away from the polls.

That's too bad, because, as a result, a very small minority of Knox County's citizen will have a very large impact on how we are governed over the next four years.

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Gene I watched with great

Submitted by Drake (not verified) on May 8, 2006 - 3:12pm.

Gene I watched with great interest Tennessee This Week that aired 5-7-06 and I have to agree with some of your panelists that confusion about who eventually ends up on the ballot was my main hesitancy in voting. I also think that reasoning was used as an excuse by some to justify their apathy. I usually early vote, but went in on Tuesday proper because I hoped as much information as possible would have been clarified by then.

Lastly, a quick question, does WATE have a policy on disclosure of your guests? I really enjoy the straightforward approach that TTW format utilizes but I was also not surprised to hear Mike Cohen and Ellen Adcock paint Mayor Ragsdale's victory as a landslide. Unless I am mistaken Mike used to work for Mayor Ragsdale and Ellen just finished a contentious election against Steve Hall. I really wouldn't expect that they say anything else. I thought that Frank Cagle giving some context about about just what kind of shoe-string budget that Steve Hall had was a needed counterbalance to that point. Thanks!