Voter turnout dropped sharply in this year’s municipal election.

A total of 110 ballots were cast yesterday. In 2011, 475 people came out to vote in the municipal election, and over 500 ballots were submitted the year before that.

City Clerk Elizabeth Masoni says it’s the smallest voter turnout she’s seen in her dozen years working at City Hall.

"This concerns me," says Masoni. "I feel very strongly that we have a responsibility to vote."

This year, all races involved incumbents who were uncontested. Because none of the candidates faced challengers, campaigning was kept at a minimum. That probably was the biggest factor in the depressed voter turnout. Zac Schasteen held on to City Council Seat F, with 89 percent of the vote. Of the 103 ballots cast, 92 went to him, and 11 went to write-in candidates. Tom Enlow got 95 percent of the vote for City Council Seat G. There were 107 votes cast, and 102 went to him and five were write-ins. Melanie Magnusen kept on to her school board seat with 96 percent of the vote. She received 100 of the 104 ballots cast, with the rest going to write-in candidates. It is unclear who the write-in votes went to, since not enough were received to force a hand count.

Masoni adds that construction and weather might have also contributed to lower voter turnout. She adds that she did get calls from citizens who said they weren’t voting because they were satisfied with the incumbents’ performance.

City Hall expects a much higher turnout for the upcoming presidential election. The general election will be held on Tuesday, November 6, and the last day to register to vote for it is this Sunday.