South Pas Voter Turnout Lower Than 2008

Fewer registered voters in South Pasadena cast ballots this past Tuesday than they did in 2008's general election, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. 

California and the rest of the country saw a similar decline, prompting Curtis Gans, director of American University's Center for the Study of the American Electorate to tell NBC News, "This is one of those rare elections in which turnout in every state in the nation went down.''

In South Pasadena, of the 15,816 registered voters, -- an increase of 905 voters from 2008 -- 9,373 dropped a ballot into their precinct box on Election Day, amounting to 59.26 percent turnout.

Of ballots cast, the majority went to re-elect President Barack Obama, with 6,364 votes. Defeated challenger Mitt Romney received 2,614 votes from South Pasadena. And, from folks who liked neither Democrat nor Republican, 36 people in South Pas voted for Roseanne Barr, an actress who represented the Peace and Freedom party. 

Back in 2008, when there were fewer registered voters in town, more people showed up at the polls. Of 14,911 registered voters, 13,269 blotted a ballot for their candidate - that's 88.99 percent turnout. The majority went to Obama, with 9,005 votes, while Republican challenger John McCain received 3,759. 

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