Floyd voter registration has soared

♦ The 2020 roll increases significantly compared to the population growth from 2016.

More than 3,000 new Floyd County voters registered in the runup to Tuesday’s election, bumping the active rolls over the 60,000 mark.

And the 60,727 who made the list before the Oct. 5 deadline is a significant jump from the 44,567 eligible to vote in 2016, the last presidential election.

Republican Donald Trump is seeking a second four-year term and Democrat Joe Biden is challenging him for the office. Libertarian Jo Jorgensen is also on the ballot in Georgia, where there are another 16 qualified write-in candidates. Votes for write-in candidates are only counted if they qualify in advance with the secretary of state’s office.

Trump won Floyd County with 70% of the vote in 2016, compared to 27% for Democrat Hillary Clinton and 3% cast for third-party candidates.

The county has continued to be a reliably red stronghold in elections since then. However, the demographic makeup of the electorate has been shifting and the turnout rate has increased for women and people of color.

Black voters, by percentage, had triple the turnout rate compared with white voters in the primary for the 2018 midterm election. In 2016, white voters topped the 74% total turnout rate while only about 60% of the eligible Black voters cast ballots.

Floyd County’s voter roll still remains overwhelmingly white, at 73.92% this year — 42,559 of those registered as of Sept. 1, the latest demographic report available from the secretary of state’s office. That’s down, however, from the 77.96% share of the 2016 electorate.

Black voters make up 12.36% of the 2020 roll, compared to 12.28% in 2016; and the percentage of Hispanic voters rose to 2.76% compared to 1.80% four years ago. Asians and other minorities also had slight gains in registrations.

While the county’s total population has grown by an estimated 2,229 people between 2016 and 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the difference in registered voters is striking.

Here’s a look in terms of hard numbers, using the Sept. 1, 2020, report that shows 57,572 registered voters:

♦ White: 42,559 compared to 34,747 in 2016;

♦ Black: 7,114 compared to 5,477 in 2016; ♦ Hispanic: 1,587 compared to 793 in 2016; and

♦ Other: 6,312 compared to 3,550 in 2016.

The youth vote

Time will tell if a concerted national push to get younger people to the polls will affect the election.

The youth vote is credited for a big part of the so-called 2018 Blue Wave that replaced a number of Republicans with Democrats. It was less noticeable in Georgia, however, and nonexistent in Floyd County.

Voters under 50 now make up just over half the county’s electorate — 30,064 out of the 57,572 registered in the September report. Of those, 11,491 are ages 18 to 29.

Still, turnout is key and just 43% of the youngest local voters cast ballots in 2016. The percentage increased with age.

About 52% of Floyd County voters ages 30 to 39 showed up in 2016. There are at least 8,998 on the rolls this year.

Voters ages 40 to 49 turned out at a rate of about 64%. They numbered 8,668 at the beginning of September.

In the 50-59 age range, just under 70% voted four years ago. There are at least 9,607 registered for 2020.

There are at least 4,831 registered voters ages 60 to 64 for this election and another 13,977 age 65 and older, for a total of 18,808. Voters in that age range turned out at a rate of close to 73% in 2016.

More than half the registered voters in Floyd County this year had cast their ballots by the time the early voting period ended Friday night. The last chance to vote is on Election Day — Tuesday — when all precincts will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

To check your registration, see a sample ballot and find the precinct where you’re

assigned, visit the Georgia My Voter Page website at mvp.sos.ga.gov. The Floyd County Elections Office can be reached at 706291-5167.