Dismal voter turnout predicted

Diana Sahagun and Ed Koch

Monday, June 4, 2001 | 10:50 a.m.

Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax today predicted a 13 percent total voter turnout in Tuesday's general election, which would be a dismal result in the wake of a brisk early voting period that recorded its busiest turnout on Friday, the last day.

If that is the case, only about 50,000 of the county's 590,000 registered voters will go to the polls Tuesday -- the vast majority to vote only on one countywide question. About 26,200 voters exercised their right in the 14-day early voting period that began May 19.

A 13 percent turnout would represent a 10 percentage point drop from the 1999 general election. But Lomax said that is misleading.

"In 1999, you had Oscar Goodman running for mayor of Las Vegas and no county questions, so the 23 percent that voted was out of just 259,000 eligible voters," Lomax said.

"When you add the county this time, the total of eligible voters soars. And you have to take into consideration just how many of them will take time off from work Tuesday to go to the polls and vote for just one question."

That one question is for a children's hospital proposed to be built in Clark County. Only North Las Vegas residents are voting in a city council race, and a controversial one at that. Henderson has two other ballot questions that would involve additional taxes, and Lomax is predicting things to be a little busier at the Henderson polls.

During early voting, the busiest site by far was the Galleria at Sunset Mall in Henderson with 8,108 people -- a little more than 23 percent of all voters -- casting ballots there.

The Meadows Mall was the second busiest site, with 5,230 people, the election department said. At the Boulevard Mall, the third busiest site, 2,756 people voted early.

University Medical Center administrators, area pediatricians and some elected officials are asking voters to approve an $80 million bond issue that would fund the construction of a children's hospital.

The proposed 255,000-square-foot facility, which would house 152 pediatric beds and an expanded neo-natal intensive-care unit, would be built on UMC's Charleston Boulevard campus.

The council races in the municipalities other than North Las Vegas were determined in the April 3 primary, when the winning candidates received more than 50 percent of the vote.

None of the five candidates vying for the North Las Vegas Ward 1 seat secured a majority of the vote in April's primary race, however, leaving North Las Vegas City Councilman John Rhodes to face former Planning Commissioner Robert Eliason.

Residents will vote at large, but both Rhodes and Eliason must live in Ward 1.

Eliason trailed Rhodes in the primary by 8 percentage points, but has since picked up the endorsement of the third-place candidate, former North Las Vegas City Councilman Theron Goynes. Goynes received 25 percent of the vote.

Rhodes still faces three felony charges of insurance fraud filed by the state's attorney general's office. Rhodes has maintained his innocence. No date has been set for a trial, but a status check on the case has been set for June 19. If elected and later convicted of a felony, Rhodes would be required to resign his council seat.

North Las Vegas residents will also decide whether to broaden the street maintenance tax to allow it to be used for parks and fire stations. The ballot question will not result in a tax increase.

In Henderson, in addition to the children's hospital, voters will decide whether to have their taxes raised to pay for more police officers, firefighters and libraries.

The two initiatives would increase the annual taxes for the owner of a $100,000 home by $98 for the next 30 years.

A public safety tax initiative would pay the salaries of 237 new city employees, including 166 police officers, 30 firefighter/paramedics and 41 support staffers. Voters narrowly rejected the same proposal seven months ago.

The library tax initiative, which would cost $14 annually for every $100,000 of assessed valuation, proposes building, stocking and operating six neighborhood libraries.

City planners estimate that the public safety initiative would raise $850 million over 30 years. The library tax hike would raise an estimated $80 million over 30 years.

In Boulder City, voters could cut the salary for elected officials or pass an amendment to the city charter that would prevent elected officials from voting themselves raises without first being re-elected.

The first initiative would eliminate auto and health benefits, cutting pay for mayor and council members from $21,800 to a base pay of $10,400 plus out-of-pocket expenses.

The second question would ensure future councils don't attempt to vote themselves same term raises, as the current council did last summer. Voters repealed those raises -- $5,000 for council members and $8,000 for the mayor -- in the April primary.

Sun reporters

Adrienne Packer and Jeffrey Libby contributed to this report.