Update: Takoma Park Voter Turnout Still Slow

Update 5 p.m.: Not much has changed since the morning. Voter turnout is still low all around precincts in Takoma Park.

Only 167 voters passed through the doors of Takoma Park Middle School in precinct 13-21, according to Democratic Precinct Chair Buddy Daniels.

"We didn't expect a big vote for this primary," Daniels said.

And though voter turnout usually picks up between the hours of 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., Daniels doesn't have much hope for an uptick.

"If we got to 250 today it would be amazing," he said.

To compare, he hopes to see around 700 voters come out for the general election in November.

Original Story: Democracy was alive and well Tuesday morning in Takoma Park. Well, sort of.

You would not know it was a primary election day if you passed by polling places like Takoma Park Middle School and . Polling places were mostly empty across the city.

"We knew it was going to be a slow day, but it has been slower than expected," Election Judge Terry Fischer said.

It's widely known that Democrats outnumber Republicans in Takoma Park, and with no opposition to President Barack Obama in the presidential race and little opposition to incumbent Democrats Rep. Chris Van Hollen (Dist. 8) and Sen. Ben Cardin, not many came out to vote Tuesday morning.

Only 52 registered Democrats out of over 2,300 registered in precinct 13-06 voted as of 11 a.m. at Piney Branch Elementary School, according to Fischer.

But the more suprising number is that with the Republican presidential nomination still up in the air, only three Republicans out of 120 had come out to vote in the precinct.

Check back to Takoma Park Patch for more updates on voter turnout and who won and lost in the 2012 Maryland primary election.