When polls opened Tuesday, Juneau voters had plenty of options on the ballot — and plenty of things on their minds.
Asked about their top issues, voters gave almost as many different answers as there were ballots cast.
“Probably the tax thing,” said Kaley McGoey, who cast her ballot at Northern Light United Church about 10:20 a.m.
McGoey was referring to the proposed 3 percent tax on marijuana sales, one of three tax-related measures under consideration.
She said she voted for statewide Ballot Measure 2 in 2014. That measure called for marijuana to be regulated “like alcohol,” and the 3 percent marijuana tax would duplicate Juneau’s tax on alcohol.
“If it’s going to be legal, it might as well be taxed,” she said.
Elayna Warren is a schoolteacher at Harborview Elementary, and when she voted about 9:40 a.m. in the Andrew P. Kashevaroff State Library, Archives, and Museum, her top priority was picking candidates for school board.
Another woman — who asked to not be named — said that when she voted at the downtown fire station about 10 a.m., she wanted to pick school board candidates who favor low classroom sizes and making decisions in the interests of the kids and teachers.
Mario Capolicchio is a naturalized citizen from Italy, and when he cast his vote, he said it was in hopes of greater openness and discussion within city government. When a storage rack was stolen from atop his van, he wasn’t happy about how the Juneau Police Department responded. He couldn’t get a straight answer, he said, and added that he wants to see “more empathy” from city government.
“Why in everything do you have to go to the top?” he asked.
Turnout on Tuesday appeared to be well ahead of the statewide primary in August and on par with the city’s last municipal election in 2015.
In that election, 23.6 percent of registered voters turned out to elect Greg Fisk for mayor. The downtown 2nd precinct, which encompasses the Flats and votes at Northern Light United Church, had the greatest turnout: 27.2 percent of registered voters.
Months later, after the sudden death of Mayor Fisk, the special election in March 2016 brought 33.3 percent of registered voters to the polls — exactly one-third of the electorate. The Lynn Canal precinct had the top turnout in that election, with 36.4 percent of all registered voters participating.
At Northern Light on Tuesday, almost 200 votes had been tallied by 10:20 a.m. By 3:20 p.m., that figure had reached 425 and was still climbing.
• Contact reporter James Brooks at james.k.brooks@juneauempire.com.
Assembly candidate Norton Gregory, right, waves his sign to commuters on their way home at the corner of 10th Street and Egan Drive on the Municipal Election eve on Monday.
