The Bad Side of Cory Booker's Victory

Cory Booker may have won the New Jersey Senate Democratic primary, but he didn't generate a lot of excitement with voters. The Daily Beast reports that turnout was horrible.

With over 98% of precincts reporting on Wednesday morning, only 481,847 voters had cast ballots in either the Democratic or the Republican primaries out of nearly 5.5 million registered voters. Barring a miracle where tens of thousands of votes appear out of the ether (and in New Jersey that can’t be entirelyruled out), turnout will be well under 10% of registered voters in a statewide race that received national media attention.

Turnout is usually lower when there isn't a presidential election. That said, the voter turnout was pathetic. Booker's Senate campaign is generating a lot of national coverage. That isn't translating into enthusiasm for Booker. The Democratic Party should ask themselves if Booker is someone they want to groom for bigger things. So far the answer seems to be no.