Residents across Sun Prairie headed to the polls on Tuesday, April 7th, continuing a tradition of civic engagement that felt as much about being part of the community as it did about casting a ballot.
Turnout in local, off-year elections is always low, but even so, polls saw a handful of voters waiting when they first opened, an upswing over the lunch hour, and were expecting another rush in the evening as workers returned home.
“It’s a little slower than I expected, to be honest,” said Barb Wallace, a poll worker at the Westside Community Center who’s been helping for the last 3-4 years. “I thought it might be busier with the Supreme Court race, but there haven’t been a ton of people.” Wallace noted early voting has become more popular and there were 39 absentee ballots when they opened the drop box this morning.
Other than a few people showing up in the wrong locations, everything was going very smoothly around 1:00pm. Voters were greeted with minimal wait times and a friendly group of poll workers ready to assist them. “I think we had four people in line when we opened,” Hoffman said, “but we had four people waiting to help, so we’re covered.”
Jeff Hoffman came with his wife to cast his ballot around noon. Hoffman came to Sun Prairie in 1987, so he’s seen his share of changes to the city in almost 40 years. He was motivated to come out because of the referendum, and didn’t think the city made a convincing case for the additional tax dollars. “I’m retired now, but when I was working, we always had to account for the money we spent. We had to have ROI. I just don’t feel like the city provided enough justification for why they need this extra money,” Hoffman said.
Newer, younger residents also showed up to have their say in the future of Sun Prairie. One couple arrived toting a car seat with a newborn baby, and another young man was voting for the very first time. “Are you even old enough to vote?” I asked him. “Yup, just turned 18 last weekend!” he replied.
Another voter taking a fresh look at local races was Connor Lest, 31, who moved to Sun Prairie 4 years ago from Menomonee Falls. He’s voted in several national elections, but this was his first time voting for City Council. “I haven’t participated in these local elections before, but I’m more concerned about taxes now, so I thought it was important.”
For some voters, like Lest, participation in local races is a relatively new priority. For others, their views on voting have evolved over decades. After nearly half a century in Sun Prairie, Rose and Ben Alvarado still carry a piece of Texas with them—even to the voting booth. While they’ve lived here for 46 years, both were born in Texas and ties to the Lone Star State run deep. Rose sported a San Antonio T-shirt and Ben was wearing his Longhorns cap as they left Focus Church after casting a ballot. Ben was focused on the Supreme Court race, where he felt that Judge Chris Taylor was more knowledgeable and experienced than her opponent, Maria Lazar.
Rose graduated from Madison West and Ben from Marshall High School but fell in love with Sun Prairie and made it their home. They now have a son who teaches elementary school and a 4-year old grandson. “When you get older, things seem to be a little more important,” Rose said. She chided Ben for not voting at all until about 20 years ago. “He didn’t think it mattered, but we try to pay attention better now.”
As polls close and ballots are counted, the focus will shift from participation to wins and losses. But for many in Sun Prairie, even if the results don’t turn out the way they’d hoped, the day itself was a reminder of something more enduring: the value of showing up.
-Andy Schoenherr
Editor, Sun Prairie Rising
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