Brooklyn's Voter Turnout Below Natl. Average: Report

A report released by the Brooklyn Community Foundation has provided new insight into civic engagement across the borough, and the revelations might not be what you expected. 

The Civic Engagement Report, the first of nine reports that look at trends across Brooklyn to develop an analysis of the civic health of the borough and its neighborhoods. It examines voter participation, campaign donations, charitable giving, religious affiliation and community service in Brooklyn. 

Findings in the report, which can be read in full here, include that one in five adults in Brooklyn are not eligibile to vote due to non-citizen status. 

Also notable is that voter turnout in the borough is well below the national average. In the 2008 presidential election; only 32.3 percent of eligible voters in Bensonhurst and Bath Beach voted, while Bed-Stuy had the highest participation rate at 67.6 percent. 

"Although the percentage of Brooklynites voting in presidential elections is increasing, we are still well below the national averages for the last three elections, which were 63.0% in 2008, 60.6% in 2004 and 54.2% in 2000," the report said. "Midterm election turnout was low for eligible Brooklyn voters, reaching only 26.1% for the November 2010 election."

According to CouncilStat and 311 calls, Brooklynites care most about housing, transportation and noise levels, the report noted. It also stated that Brooklyn residents are the most generous in the city, contributing a greater proportion of their income to charity than any other borough.

On average, those who are less financially well-off in Brooklyn give a greater proportion of their incomes to charity, the report said. Borough Park and Flatbush and Midwood residents gave the highest contributions as a percentage of income to charity; Greenpoint and Sunset Park rank lowest.

The report noted that 1,651 Brooklyn nonprofits received nearly $2 billion in contributions in 2009, and that one in five employed Brooklynites work in either the non-profit or public sectors.

What do you think? Do these stats match your reality?