Voter turnout in Germany down slightly

24 September 2017, 6:08 pm

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BERLIN — Germany’s federal election authority says national voter turnout is slightly down so far compared to the last election in 2013.

Polls have been open since 8 a.m. and the Federal Returning Officer said that as of 2 p.m. Sunday, 41.1 percent of eligible voters had cast their ballots.

That was down slightly from 2013, where 41.4% of eligible voters had cast their ballots by 2 p.m. That election ended up with 71.5% overall participation.

The office urged Germans to get out and cast their ballots, noting that polls were open until 6 p.m. Absentee ballots aren’t considered as part of the turnout and there are expected to be a record number this year.

— AP