Update: Primary Voting Numbers Up Slightly As Polls Close In Kensington

Update, 9 p.m.: By the end of the day, the election judges at reported 532 registered voters made it out to the polls for the Maryland primary.

Although Marilyn Emery, the chief Democratic election judge, could not break down the numbers by party, she said nearly 18 percent of the eligible voting population did cast a ballot.

Final numbers for Kensington Armory were not as high, according to Robin Watson, the chief Democratic election judge at that precinct.

Only 160 cast their ballots Tuesday, out of the 1,245 registered to vote.
 
Watson said 100 were registered as Democrats, 55 were registered as Republicans and 5 were unaffiliated.

Check back with Patch for a breakdown of the numbers Wednesday.

Update, 3 p.m.: It's been a slow day in Kensington at the polls.

Nearly 75 voters had come out to cast a ballot in Maryland's primary at the , Chief Democratic Election Judge Robin Watson reported around 1 p.m.

Watson said that the Armory's low turnout could be due to a switch in voting precincts for Kensington residents. Almost a dozen residents were turned away at the Armory and redirected to , the new polling location for residents who live south of the CSX tracks.

The change came after a school system redistricting.

At Temple Emanuel, the numbers weren't any better.

Chief Election Judge Marilyn Emery reported that only 6 percent of the precinct's 3,000 registered voters had made it to the polls. With no lunch time rush, she said she would be surprised if the precinct saw a 15 percent turnout.

Although turnout was lower than expected, those who did vote said it was because it gave them an opportunity to choose their leaders.

Ann Scherer, of Chevy Chase View, voted at Temple Emanuel because she said "it's voting day," and she votes because it's a opportunity to choose between different philosophies.

Scherer supported Mitt Romney because she thinks he's a "good man with a grasp of the economy."

While Sue Fedor, of Silver Spring, said she turned out to vote for the board of education.

"It's really a shame [that the turnout is low]," Fedor said. "I'm tired of hearing people complaining, but they don't get involved."

Fedor said people need to take the extra time to come out and meet candidates.

In the Kensington area, the biggest reason for voters to turn out may be for the board of education race, as one campaigner noted, . Recently, and a committee tasked with finding a location for the new school agreed it should be at in Kensington.

Original Post, 11 a.m.: It's been a slow morning for election judges and campaigners at polling places in Kensington, as fewer than 100 people made it out to vote in the Maryland primary before 10 a.m.

Previously, all residents went to Kensington Armory to vote. But this year, the boundary for polling locations was changed. Residents south of the CSX tracks went to to vote.

According to Marilyn Emery, the chief Democratic election judge at Temple Emanuel, only 62 people voted in the primary before 9 a.m.

"It's not that different than other primaries," Emery said. "Usually it's under 25 percent of registered voters that come out to vote."

Slightly more than 3,000 people are registered to vote at the temple, she said. But with schools off for spring break and the Easter holiday around the corner, Emery said the turnout could be lower this year.

However, she is still holding out for a lunchtime rush.

At Kensington Armory, the site of , only 19 people showed up to vote before 9:40 a.m., out of the 1,245 registered voters eligible to vote there.

Chief Democratic Election Judge Robin Watson said the turnout is "super low, even for a primary."

Watson believes it's a result of the redistricting.

But, Alicia Peterson, the chief Republican election judge, said she believes the Maryland primary is too late.

"By now you already know who's going to take the nomination," Peterson said.

Watson believes there might be a rush after the regular work day.