Every vote in a local election matters. Just ask Yelm Mayor Joe DePinto, elected in 2021, but who narrowly lost a mayoral election in 2017 to JW Foster by just 14 votes.
With the Nov. 5 2024 Thurston County general election quickly approaching, DePinto emphasized the importance of local elections in an interview with the Nisqually Valley News on Sept. 23.
The Nov. 5 Thurston County general election features two races for Thurston County commissioner positions, including the District No. 2 race between Foster, an independent, and Rachel Dreon, a Democrat. Also featured on the ballot will be the race for Thurston County District No. 4 commissioner between former Tenino Mayor Wayne Fournier, a Democrat, and Rob Laymon, who states no party preference in his candidate profile. Incumbent Thurston County District No. 1 Commissioner Carolina Mejia, a Democrat, runs unopposed in the upcoming election.
Also included in the Nov. 5 Thurston County general election is the race for the county’s public utility district commissioner position in District No. 1 between Linda L. Oosterman and Bruce D. Wilkinson Jr.
DePinto told the Nisqually Valley News that elections are “crucial to our democratic foundation,” as the United States operates as a democratic republic with the people choosing the vast majority of leaders in the country. It’s important to vote in local elections as local level leaders are included in transportation, policing, and recreational opportunities. He added that local leaders have impacts on aspects like sewer and water rates and other local tax measures.
DePinto said just under 14% of voters in Yelm city limits turned out for the 2023 general election, which featured five different Yelm City Council and Yelm Community Schools races.
“It’s so, so important for people to vote. I was looking at some of the voter turnout statistics by district for the past few elections, and the [election] here during 2023, locally. We had the lowest voter turnout, and we have for the past decade, in Thurston County,” DePinto said. “Fourteen percent of voters decided who sat on City Council last year. That’s ridiculous. The importance of voting is huge — I cannot stress how important it is. In the City of Yelm, we had several races determined by a handful of votes. It’s ridiculous that we aren’t at least in the 20th percentile of voter turnout.
“It’s not because of our size. Bucoda had a higher turnout than us. Tenino, all these cities with smaller populations have bigger turnouts,” DePinto added.
DePinto understands that non-presidential election years typically have a lower voter turnout, with 60% to 70% of voters turning out in a presidential election year.
“It’s just as important to vote in local elections. My race was 14 votes (of separation) when I lost in 2017. I had so many people come up to me after the election that said they would’ve voted for me, but forgot to vote,” DePinto said. “Every single vote counts. Literally, every vote counts here in local elections but also in state elections, too.”
Leading up to the Thurston County general election, DePinto said that Facebook users who follow the City of Yelm on social media will see the local city government posting information on election resources.
Ballot Drop Box locations
Lackamas Elementary School, 16240 Bald Hill Road SE, Yelm
Nisqually Tribal Administration Building, 4820 She Nah Num Dr. SE, Olympia
Rainier City Hall, 102 Rochester St. W., Rainier
Yelm School Administration, 110 First St. NE, Yelm
South Puget Sound Community College, 2011 Mottman Road SW, Olympia
Thurston County Auditor’s Election Office, 2915 29th Ave. SW, Tumwater
The Thurston County Auditor’s Elections division mailed 10,111 general election ballots to military and overseas voters registered in Thurston County, according to a news release. Military or overseas voters who have not received a ballot by Wednesday, Oct. 2, should contact the Elections Division at 360-786-5408.
For voters not in the military or overseas, ballots will be mailed on Oct. 10. Ballots must be postmarked by election day or received in a drop box by 8 p.m. on election night.
