Voter Turnout Low for City Election in Malden

Voter turnout has been low so far for the city election Tuesday in Malden.

As of 2 p.m., about 10 percent of 29,000-plus registered voters in Malden had voted during the local election, according to Carol Ann Desiderio, assistant registrar of voters for the city.

In 2009, the city election drew a considerably larger turnout, as 30 percent of voters cast their ballots, according to Desiderio.

"We attribute that high turnout to the fact that the blue bag question was on the ballot that year," she said. "We had a lot of people doing a very strong campaign to get out the vote."

In 2011, 32 percent of voters participated in the mayoral election, according to Desiderio. That year, Gary Christenson defeated Deborah Fallon in the race for mayor.

Desiderio doesn't anticipate having similar turnout figures to the 2009 city election or the 2011 mayoral election. She estimates that the city will get a turnout of 15-20 percent.

If you haven't voted yet, find out where to vote in Malden here.