Voting in the Texas primary elections is underway, and the Texas Panhandle is already seeing remarkably heavy turnout.
In fact, as The Amarillo Globe-News reports, Potter and Randall Counties are seeing more primary voters than in either the 2016 or 2014 primary elections.
Potter County Elections Administrator Melynn Huntley expressed surprise that this year was beating 2016, as that year featured a presidential primary with big-name Texas candidates like Ted Cruz vying to occupy the oval office.
Presidential elections have traditionally drawn more voters than midterm elections, but that doesn’t seem to be holding true this year. Huntley said she believed the turnout was being driven by hotly contested races such as the contest for Kel Seliger’s state senate seat and competitive three-way and four-way contests for local judgeships. In addition, many observers have seen these local elections as a referendum on the general direction of the country.