Despite Rain, Low Turnout, Candidates Remain Hopeful

Standing outside the Moon Area Middle School just before 8 a.m., Moon Area School Board President Mark Scappe stood ready to greet voters. 

"Low turnout," said Scappe, who is seeking re-election. "We're optimistic. But the turnout has been very low." 

In the cool, damp weather, candidates stood outside Moon-area polling locations for last-minute campaigning ---  getting the word out with one last handshake or campaign flier before residents cast their votes. Many said the unseasonably dreary conditions may have kept voters from the polls. 

Local candidates are vying for positions on the Crescent Township Board of Commissioners, the s and the in the  

"We'd heard the turnout will be below 20 percent," said school board candidate Dennis Harbaugh, who is running on the "Citizens for Education" ticket."Whether it's for us or not I just hope people get out and vote." 

Harbaugh said a few residents stopped by Bon Meade Elementary earlier today, where he and campaign volunteers waited on the sidewalk to usher in voters he'd met along his Moon campaign trail. 

"To be honest, it was actually really fun," said Harbaugh of his first experience running for elected office. "It was great to just get out there and talk to people and knock on doors."

Candidates huddled inside a garage this morning near the back entrance of the Crescent Township Municipal Building. Jerry Keller, who is running for re-election on the township's Board of Commissioners, said a ballot stacked with local candidates will likely fail to draw a large number of voters. 

Still, he came prepared to spend the day at the polls -- umbrellas, a tent and a few baked goods lined the building's garage. Fellow commissioner Bill Cook, who is also seeking re-election, briefly left the building to fetch a raincoat at home, Keller said. 

"I believe that most people have their mind made up by the time they get here," Keller said. "But it's good to be here to greet people." 

Frank Tatone, whose wife Gia is running for a seat on the school board alongside Harbaugh, waited for voters outside McCormick Elementary School this morning. Wearing one of his wife's campaign pins on his coat, he said he hoped the number of voters increases as the day goes on. 

"She's voting in our district right now, so I'm helping out," he said. "I've always been a registered Democrat, but today I'm voting for my wife."