Turnout

Four years ago, Republican F. Vernon Boozer breezed unopposed to a new four-year state Senate term -- his popularity never questioned, even as a moderate in a conservative district.But Tuesday night, after 17 years in the upper chamber, Boozer, 63, lost the GOP primary for his 9th District central Baltimore County seat to a political opponent who had never run for public office.What happened? Some say nearly everything.Low turnout, complacency by Boozer, redistricting, gun control, abortion, needle exchanges and even Boozer's talent for dealing with General Assembly Democrats converged to boost Dr. Andrew Harris, an obstetric anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital, to a 54 percent victory, observers say."

With a festively decorated trolley, the return of funny hats and threats of dire consequences for those who stay at home, office seekers in Maryland are hoping they can produce a respectable turnout for Maryland's primary elections Tuesday.The voters may not cooperate, however."They're not excited, that's for sure," said state Sen. Nathaniel J. McFadden, "and this thing that's going on with the president doesn't help us at all."The absence of closely contested gubernatorial primaries leaves McFadden and other Democrats worried that core groups will boycott not just the primary, but the Nov. 3 general election.

With the end of an arduous and acrimonious campaign for governor at hand, Maryland voters are being bombarded by high-tech and clubhouse electioneering -- highlighted by President Clinton, former Sen. Bob Dole and the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson.Driving for the highest possible turnout of their supporters for Tuesday's election, Democratic Gov. Parris N. Glendening and his Republican challenger, Ellen R. Sauerbrey, are making a final sweep across the state as their parties intensify the push toward Tuesday's election.

The first in a series of public discussions sponsored by Howard County police on the growing problem of heroin abuse attracted only a few residents to a meeting in Columbia this week."

Four years ago, Republican F. Vernon Boozer breezed unopposed to a new four-year state Senate term -- his popularity never questioned, even as a moderate in a conservative district.But Tuesday night, after 17 years in the upper chamber, the 63-year-old Boozer lost his central Baltimore County seat to a political opponent who had never run for public office.What happened? Some say nearly everything.Low turnout, complacency by Boozer, redistricting, gun control, abortion, needle exchanges and even Boozer's talent for dealing with General Assembly Democrats converged to boost Dr. Andrew Harris, an obstetric anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital, to a 54 percent victory, observers say."

For many Baltimore voters, the most exciting thing about Tuesday's primary may be the flashy new voting system.Computerized machines -- 962 in all -- will be used for the first time at 254 polling places as voters choose from among 277 candidates vying to run in November for positions ranging from governor to clerk of the courts.But given the shortage of truly competitive statewide primary races, and the fact that the top city offices -- mayor, city comptroller and council -- are not on the ballot until next year, few voters are expected to show up to try the machines out.The city elections chief and officials of the Republican and Democratic parties are predicting that no more than one in three registered voters will bother to come to the polls.

FOUR YEARS AGO, voter turnout in Anne Arundel was abysmal. Of 184,094 registered voters, 41 percent turned out for the primary.No one expects the figure to improve much tomorrow, reflecting the general apathy of the American electorate. Only about half of the people old enough to vote in the county bother to register in the first place.A closer look at the 1994 turnout is even more disturbing: Only about 22 percent of young adults, ages 18 to 35, who were registered to vote did so. People older than 35 cast 86 percent of all votes in the last primary.

A surge of support from women, African-Americans and other traditional Democratic voters has given Gov. Parris N. Glendening a modest lead over Republican Ellen R. Sauerbrey with a week remaining before Tuesday's election, a new poll has found.Locked in a statistical tie three weeks ago, Glendening now leads Sauerbrey among likely voters 52 percent to 44 percent, with 4 percent undecided, according to a poll done for The Sun and other news organizations.Among voters considered the most certain to cast ballots, Glendening holds a smaller lead of 50 percent to 46 percent for Sauerbrey.

ON TUESDAY, a minority of residents in Anne Arundel County will make decisions for everyone else.If this year's turnout follows the pattern of four years ago, about 40 percent of registered voters will bother to cast ballots this week.This means that 87,000 people will select the Democratic and Republican nominees for state and county offices. The candidates who ultimately win the general election in November will make decisions that effect the 87,000 who voted -- and the remaining 383,000 residents.

WASHINGTON -- Members of Congress are home celebrating American independence, the male members by spilling mustard on their red neckties (do they wear them even at picnics? probably) and getting their wingtips close to the grass roots. Members of both parties must be nervously wondering who is going to vote Nov. 3.To regain control of the House, Democrats need to gain only 11 seats, but that would be the best gain for a party holding the presidency since the emergence of the two-party system.

When Columbia residents Jonathan and Delma Branch volunteered to help other Howard residents campaign for Barack Obama, they had no idea what to expect. "This was our first time ever doing anything like this," Jonathan Branch, 53, told about 40 people gathered at a Columbia Democratic Club meeting Wednesday night in Jeffers Hill. The Branches went to Pennsylvania to knock on doors and worked the phones in the Columbia office. As did other first-timers and even experienced volunteers, the Branches said they believed that the campaign was not just about whether Republicans or Democrats took power, but that it was part of America's long road toward racial and social justice despite some voters' angry rejection of their entreaties.

The polls weren't even open early yesterday when Heru-ka Anu began to rally his fellow voters. Anu, who said he had been waiting with his wife at the head of the line at Baltimore's Dickey Hill Elementary School since 4:30 a.m., led a chant of Barack Obama's campaign slogan, "Yes, We Can." Moments later, his wife Nana emerged from the voting booth with her thumbs poking skyward. "Yes," she exclaimed, "we did!" Across the Baltimore region and beyond, a crush of voters queued up early, often enduring waits of an hour or more with little if any complaint.

Maryland voters will flock to the polls today, lured by a momentous presidential election but also called to decide on slot-machine gambling and to settle one of the most competitive congressional races in the country. Expected record turnout could produce long lines at precincts, which might influence decisions on a proposed constitutional amendment to allow early voting in Maryland. Pages and pages of down-ballot bond issues could further cause voting delays. But long lines are not likely to stifle voter enthusiasm, said Linda Lamone, the state's elections administrator.

Despite a crush of last-minute registrations in Maryland, Gov. Martin O'Malley and elections officials sought to assure voters yesterday that the state can handle an increased turnout without unduly long lines at polls. About 354,000 people have newly registered to vote in the state this year - a number that is about half the size of Baltimore City's population - and officials are projecting a record 85 percent turnout, O'Malley said during a news conference at Northwood Elementary School in Baltimore.

Mayor Sheila Dixon's humility in the face of victory may seem curious since she overwhelmingly defeated her closest opponent. But when you look at the numbers, the mayor won Tuesday's primary with the votes of less than a fifth of registered Democrats. Turnout was low, and some say not unusually so, but it shouldn't be forgotten in the post-primary euphoria of Ms. Dixon's win. She has her work cut out for her, and energizing the electorate should be high on her list. According to city election board estimates, nearly 31 percent of Baltimore's registered Democrats cast ballots, lower than the figures from 2003 and from 1999, when 49 percent turned out for a contentious three-way primary race for mayor.

Election judge John Lowenson stepped outside Hampstead Hill Elementary for his umpteenth smoke break around lunchtime yesterday, puffing under an overhang as a light rain started up again. Inside, his absence wasn't exactly missed. "We're not going to break 100 [voters] by 1 o'clock," he said with a grimace. "This is the slowest I've ever seen it." Though state officials had been predicting a paltry 30 percent of Baltimore's 331,987 registered voters would cast ballots in yesterday's citywide primary, late in the day it seemed hitting even that would be a stretch.

Sheila Dixon, the hard-driving West Baltimore politician who became the city's first female mayor, easily defeated Keiffer J. Mitchell Jr., a scion of one of the nation's prominent civil rights families, in a low-turnout Democratic mayoral primary yesterday. In the race for City Council president, Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake, the incumbent, beat Michael Sarbanes in a contest that pitted the children of two respected political leaders against each other. "I have never been more honored in my life than I am right now at this very moment," Dixon, 53, told jubilant supporters at a Canton victory party last night.

Come for the beer. Stay for the volleyball. In many ways, that's the initial strategy of Lee Corrigan, organizer of this weekend's Toyota Pro East beach volleyball tournament. Toyota Pro Beach East Tour Today; Rash Field; seating free Schedule: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (final around 3 p.m.)

WASHINGTON -- For six years, the Bush administration, aided by Justice Department political appointees, has pursued an aggressive legal effort to restrict voter turnout in key battleground states in ways that favor Republican political candidates, according to former department lawyers and a review of written records. The administration intensified its efforts last year as President Bush's popularity and Republican support eroded heading into a midterm battle for control of Congress, which the Democrats won. Facing nationwide voter registration drives by Democratic-leaning groups, the administration alleged widespread election fraud and endorsed proposals for tougher state and federal voter identification laws.

It's an idea that should have been nipped in the bud, and quickly - a new Thursday afternoon chamber orchestra series totally unprompted by public demand. Instead, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra bravely proceeded with introducing it anyway this week, drawing a paltry, downright embarrassing turnout - a few hundred, at most, in the 2,400-seat Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. What were they thinking over there? If You Go The BSO performs at 11 a.m. today at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St. Tickets are $22-$49.