Whatchamacolumn: Local election results are short on details

Taking a deep dive into election results is fun for some, boring for others … for me, it’s a deep-seated habit from 50-plus years of writing news and commentary about election outcomes.

Computers, internet access and specialty software are great tools for election analysis, but some improvements are needed in Yamhill County’s presentation of balloting results. More on that below, but first a few unanswered questions about local races and ballot measures this week.

What explains conservative influences backing Donald Trump countywide for president and making Kim Morris McMinnville’s next mayor, yet voters appear poised to remove county Commissioner Lindsay Berschauer from office?

How much did early November distribution of annual property tax statements contribute to 60-40 defeat of the Chemeketa Community College bond measure? Was anything clearer than the 80-20 thumping delivered to that harebrained Measure 18 with its major corporate revenue tax converted into pro-rata income for Oregonians?

Why did two Amity City Council races have no candidates on the ballot, throwing those races into a count of write-in votes?

I also found myself pondering the same reality that has dominated voting results in Oregon and elsewhere for decades — the urban-rural divide. All four Republican candidates for U.S. president and in Oregon races for secretary of state, attorney general and state treasurer are leading in 27 of Oregon’s 36 counties. All four will lose handily statewide because they are getting only about 20 percent of the votes in Multnomah County.

Across America, voters in many large cities overwhelmingly support liberal candidates and causes while rural residents steadfastly vote with conservative values. Interestingly, according to a study at the Cornell College of Arts & Sciences, “It was only among white voters that a large and growing disparity appears between rural and urban residents.”

Back to a few pet-peeve issues about Yamhill County reports of voting results:

They don’t identify the political party affiliation of candidates, and they don’t identify the subject matter of statewide and local ballot measures. That information was included in local reports years ago.

Even more irritating is when reports break out voting from all precincts without identifying the area of each precinct. Sure, you can create your own grid showing both number and geographic area for all precincts, but there’s no good reason not to have that information in county reports.

Perhaps the most interesting report of countywide voting comes after all ballot counts are certified and compiled into the Election Canvass Precinct Results report. It would be nice if vote-tally software provided that level of detail in reports throughout the election analysis period.

Meanwhile, it appears the only high-profile election issue remaining in Yamhill County is the final count — perhaps even a recount — in the race between incumbent Lindsay Berschauer and challenger David “Bubba” King. They currently are separated by just 652 votes out of 43,153 cast, and nearly 3,000 Yamhill County voters returned ballots but didn’t bother to vote for either of them.

Jeb Bladine can be reached at jbladine@newsregister.com or 503-687-1223.