More yawns than cheers in Puerto Rico primary

[RamboLiberal]

Source: My Way News/AP

Perhaps it had to happen sooner or later: a Democratic presidential primary where voters just don't care.

It's happening later. After an extended season of sizzling competition and swollen turnout in state after state, it's Puerto Rico's turn, and the territory is showing little interest in what's left of the contest between Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Local elections routinely attract 80 percent of voters. And the Democratic primary is open to all registered voters of whatever party, because Puerto Rico doesn't register voters by party. Nevertheless, electoral officials predict fewer than 25 percent of the 2.3 million registered voters will turn out for Sunday's primary.

This, despite the sizable prize of 55 delegates at stake, more than are offered in Montana and South Dakota combined in the last two primaries of the year, on Tuesday.



Read more: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080529/D90VIJLG0.html

[cloudythescribbler]

1. how does this turnout compare to presidential primaries generally in Puerto Rico?

these kinds of facts need to be placed in their overall context -- not that the implications drawn are NECESSARILY false, just I'd like to know more

(it might be said that the nominee is usually already determined before Puerto Rico's primary, but in response, it seems pretty obvious -- elsewhere than on DU -- that Obama is the nominee. How has turnout been in the states since, say North Carolina? And are those showing up to vote most likely to be casting a protest vote, once the nominee becomes a foregone conclusion?)

It may be that there isn't huge resistance in Puerto Rico to Obama as nominee, so turnout is correspondingly low

[KnaveRupe]

2. I guess PR doesn't have enough "hard-working white" voters. n/t

[cloudythescribbler]

3. Actually, I read since my last post here that the LAST presidential primary in Puerto Rico was 1980!

and of course, we'd have to take into account the special and specific political context.

Again, though, it isn't the "lack" of this or that kind of 'hardworking' voter, but the degree to which Obama's nomination seems certain. Surely as of Pa (April 22), there surely COULD have been a significant Hillary Clinton rebound. In fact, with the primaries in NC and Indiana, it was was clear that wasn't going to happen. And Obama did just fine in Oregon, and continues to plod to a foregone conclusion of the nomination.

Remember, Puerto Rico has no electoral votes towards the 538 magic number in the general presidential election. Beyond these bare facts, I don't follow the politics of Puerto Rico at all, so I can't really do more than make guesses.