by Courtney Price

While residents in counties around Lake Norman came to the polls this election in numbers exceeding 65 percent, the turnout decreased some compared to the last presidential election.

Statewide, a slightly smaller portion of North Carolinians voted. This year, 68.32 percent of registered voters cast ballots, compared to 69.93 percent in 2008.

Some of the areas surrounding Lake Norman, however, didn’t follow the countywide trends. Here’s a look at how lake area communities turned out for the Nov. 6 election.

North Mecklenburg

Voters in Davidson, Cornelius and Huntersville appeared less interested in this year’s election, compared to 2008 and compared to the county as a whole.

In the precincts that cover the north Mecklenburg towns, 43,748 out of 70,045 registered voters actually cast a ballot this year – or 62.46 percent of those registered.

In 2008, north Meck voters turned out at 65.32 percent, 39,132 ballots among 59,912 registered.

On the whole, Mecklenburg County reported a 66.48 percent turnout, roughly the same as the 66.18 percent turnout in 2008.

Davidson voters turned out at 65.14 percent, while Cornelius ballots totaled 64.47 percent of registered voters. Huntersville posted the lowest north Mecklenburg turnout at 60.75 percent.

Denver

The rate of Denver voters didn’t change much from 2008, when 27.63 percent turned out to vote. This year that number dropped slightly to 27.19 percent.

This does not include those who voted early.

Out of the 17,350 registered voters in the eight east Lincoln precincts, 4,717 voters cast ballots on Election Day.

The eastern part of the county only had one precinct, Lowesville West, that exceeded 30 percent turnout, while several middle and western precincts broke 40 percent.

Lincoln County overall boasted a 69.29 percent turnout, down three points from the 72.31 percent turnout in the 2008 presidential election year.

Mooresville

Mooresville boasted the highest lake-area turnout as well as the greatest change compared to the 2008 election.

Of the 46,715 registered voters in southern Iredell County, 32,461 residents voted – a rate of 69.49 percent. That’s more than double the turnout in the 2008 election, when only 26.15 percent of registered voters cast ballots.

Countywide, Iredell turned out at 69.18 percent, down from 72.54 in 2008.

The county’s four Davidson precincts, an area roughly encompassing the 28117 zip code, were among the most active for the election, ranging from 70 to 76.93 percent voter turnout.

Those in the Davidson 1-B precinct, who vote at Lake Norman Volunteer Fire Department, reported a 76.93 percent voter turnout, the highest in the county.

The county’s four Coddle Creek precincts, an area roughly encompassing the 28115 zip code, were among the least active in the election, ranging from 63.12 to 67.85 percent.

Those in the Coddle Creek 4 precinct, who vote at Peninsula Baptist Church, reported a 64.36 percent voter turnout, the second lowest in the county.