Lynn voter registration increases

LYNN – Voter registration rose in two city wards between September 2009 and last month, but in the precinct that boasted more registered voters than any other four years ago, the number of registrations dropped nearly 13 percent.Ward 1 Precinct 1 voter registration totaled 2,235 voters, according to an Aug. 27 city tabulation. By contrast, 2,559 people were registered to vote in the precinct for the preliminary election in 2009 – the last year voters elected a mayor.The registration drop surprised former councilor Charles O?Brien, who speculated that the decrease could reflect an aging population or the lackluster economy?s local impact.?Seniors could be selling off their home or people lost jobs and couldn?t afford their house anymore,” O?Brien said Tuesday.Like four other city wards, Ward 1 features a political contest that will not be settled in the Sept. 17 preliminary election, but on Nov. 5 when voters decide whether to re-elect Councilor Wayne Lozzi or choose political newcomer Debra Plunkett.The candidates are already off and running, with Lozzi peppering Lynnfield Street, the main artery running through Ward 1, with campaign signs. Plunkett, an anti-bullying counselor and cancer survivor, campaigned last weekend on a Sluice Pond pontoon boat. Wards 2, 3, 4 and 5 also feature contests, with Ward 5 voters choosing on Sept. 17 two out of three candidates to appear on the November final ballot. Seth Albaum, Dianna Chakoutis and Jake Keo are vying for votes in the ward where precincts 1 and 3 saw registration gains this year compared to 2009.Those precincts increased registration by more than 10 percent and Ward 2 Precinct 4 also gained 1,458 voters registered for the preliminary election, compared to 1,387 in 2009.In two precincts in Ward 3, registrations rose by 30 percent. In Ward 4, precincts 2 and 3 registrations rose by a combined 35 percent compared to 2009 numbers. Ward 4 Precinct 2 had 1,230 registered voters in September 2009 compared to 1,517 registered for the Sept. 17 election.O?Brien counted Precinct 2 as his former Ward 3 home precinct. There were 1,496 registered voters in his precinct in 2009, compared to 1,851 registered as of last week. He suggested councilors Gordon “Buzzy” Barton?s and Hong Net?s successful candidacies boosted minority voters? interest in the precinct during the last two years.But the former councilor offered a word of caution to candidates hoping to politically prosper off registration increases.?A lot of people register to vote and then don?t bother to vote. That?s why you have to identify your vote,” O?Brien said.