Straight-ticket voting nearly 80% of ballots

Above is an example of a voting ballot such the ones used in recent local elections. Photo Submitted Voters in Clarke County and statewide overwhelmingly cast straight-ticket ballots for either Democratic or Republican candidates in the Nov. 3 general election. Of the 9,583 votes cast in Clarke County, 79% were straight-party tickets. About 21% of county voters marked each candidate’s name individually. In Clarke County, the political party breakdown was 57% for Democratic candidates and 43% for Republicans. In Alabama, 1.2 million ballots were cast and 70.5% of those were straight-ticket voting, according to the Alabama Secretary of State’s office. Republicans dominated with 54%. Alabama is said to be the top straight-ticket voting state of the six that allow the practice. The number has been high for several election cycles and this year’s may be the highest. An official tabulation was certified Tuesday. Unofficial totals for county elected offices were reported last week.

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