Encino Sees Low Voter Turnout for City Election

Few Encino residents turned out to vote this morning in the Los Angeles city election, which will decide several City Council seats and a number of ballot measures. It's not a big surprise, considering municipal elections tend not to attract a large voter turnout.

Dominated by budget woes, the ballot includes some key taxation measures, proposals to slash jobs, public services and worker hours to ease the city's budget deficit.

At the assisted living facility on Ventura Boulevard, which was turned into a polling station for the day, only about 25 voters had shown up to vote by 10 a.m. About an hour later, the Dempsey Avenue polling station had about 50 voters. The station at clocked similar numbers.

The handful of voters that did show up were interested in three issues: pension reform, library funding, and the tax on medical marijuana dispensaries.

Encino resident Helen Baker stopped by the polling station at Petco to drop off her mail ballot. She said that she had turned out to vote for the District 3 school board seat; , the marijuana measure; and L.A.'s library-funding .

"I'm allowed to vote by mail, but I was late," she said. "I voted for the library and I voted for the marijuana tax. I use the library and it's nice every once in a while to vote for something—for a service—that you can actually take advantage of."

At the polling station on Dempsey Avenue, Bronwyn Ralph cast her vote for her friend Nicole Chase, who is running for the city Community College Board.

Ralph was for the library funding proposition, but against the taxation of marijuana dispensaries.

"I think the library needs some additional funding, especially with all the cuts that are going on," she said. "I don't think [marijuana] should be taxed ... If you're taxing it, it just will promote it and prompt some of the politicians to legalize it in the future."

The polling stations are open until 8 tonight—and then the counting will begin.

Don't know where to vote? Click here: lavote.net/LOCATOR.