By the numbers
Hammond Referendum
  • Number of registered voters: 48,358
  • Number of people who voted at the polls: 6,613
  • Absentee votes: 565
  • Total votes cast: 6,728
  • Turnout: 13.9%
Hobart Referendum
  • Number of registered voters: 16,129
  • Number of people who voted at the polls: 1,816
  • Absentee votes: 489
  • Total votes cast: 2,305
  • Turnout: 14.3%
CROWN POINT — Only 14 percent of the 64,487 voters turned out for the referendum questions in the School City of Hammond and the School City of Hobart.

That's according to the Lake County Election Board who released the information following the special election Tuesday.

The School City of Hammond asked voters for the authority to borrow $110.6 million for the construction of a new high school and some upgrades to other buildings, along with $70 million for operational costs.

Voters in the School City of Hobart approved raising $12 million for the operating budget and $41.2 million for the construction referendum. The construction money will be used to build a new elementary school to replace Ridge View Elementary, which is 62 years old, a swimming pool at the high school and upgrades at other schools, including replacing some boilers.

In Hammond, several precincts had more than 20 percent of its voters to show up at the polls supporting both questions while Hobart, which also won both referendum requests by nearly 70 percent, only had one precinct which exceeded the 20 percent mark.

Hammond Precinct No. H1-07, had a crowd of 21.5 percent, with 115 people casting their vote. Of that number, 101 people were at the polls while 14 people cast an absentee ballot. There are 534 registered voters in that precinct.

Hammond Precincts No. H3-11 and H3-12 both had in excess of 24 percent of the voters show up. In H3-11, 24.6 percent or 114 people voted, while 24 percent or 102 people voted in H3-12.

In Hammond Precinct No. H4-08, 26.8 percent or 118 people voted out of 441 registered voters. That was the largest number of people who turned out in any of the Hammond precincts. Of that total, 101 people were at the polls and 17 voted by absentee ballot.

Over in Hobart, the largest number of voters turned out in Hobart Precinct No. HO 13, with 20.7 percent or 87 voters out of a registered number of 421. There were 19.2 percent or 117 voters out of 610 voters who voted in Hobart Precinct No. HO 01.

In Hobart Precinct No. HO 03, 19 percent or 170 people voted out of 894 registered voters. In Hobart Precinct HO 24, 14 percent or 177 people voted out of a possible 1,264 registered voters. Of that number, 144 people went to the polls and 33 voted by absentee ballot.

Hobart Precinct No. HO 02 had the largest number of absentee ballots at 53. It had a voter turnout rate of 17 percent or 154 people. There are 905 registered voters in that precinct.
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