Low turnout and last-minute defections of polling station presidents (but with a wave of young people rushing to replace them). It is the story of the first day of voting in Turin, where citizens were called to the polls from 3pm to 11pm (and will still be able to vote today from 7am to 11pm).
The turnout for the day was around 16%. In the 2019 regional elections it was 59.16%, and 62.82% in 2014 (in both cases, however, voting was only on Sunday and the data related to the whole day). Two cards and two choices: the gray one for the European elections, the green one to indicate the future governor of Piedmont, in a five-way challenge between Alberto Cirio (centre-right), Gianna Pentenero (centre-left), Sarah Disabato (M5S), Francesca Frediani (Piemonte Popolare) and Alberto Costanzo (Lista Libertà). A day characterized by the “frantic” search for scrutineers, but above all for presidents. As the councilor for civic services Francesco Tresso underlines, a percentage of farewells is «physiological. But this year there have been numerous withdrawals at the last minute.” The City has had to replace 420 presidents out of 919 since the first appointment, almost 50%. To help the waiting lists, which this year have been enriched by unprecedented appeals on chat, social media and university noticeboards: «In the face of general disaffection – continues Tresso – it is a positive sign that many young people have made themselves available». A happy note that also brings with it a note: «Perhaps frightening is the workload and the responsibility for a compensation that perhaps at a national level should be reviewed, providing for an increase». The president of the polling station, in fact, earns 209.50 euros, less than five euros an hour even considering the counting until tomorrow evening. The same reason that may have also pushed the scrutineers to abandon (163 euros). At eleven in the morning, on Cavoretto’s Facebook page, we read “Aaa, urgent scrutineer wanted”; words similar to those that appeared on Borgo San Secondo social media. Before the polls opened, the alarm seemed to have subsided, albeit with some difficulty: the substitute from the special section of the Martini hospital was co-opted while he was at a wedding; in some polling stations various problems, such as only one ballot box or unsigned minutes, were caused by the (forgivable) inexperience of the presidents. But at 3pm two schools actually had to postpone their opening. One is Massimo Mila, in via Germonio, where the president withdrew at the last moment due to an unexpected event and the replacement was also not available; the other is the Alberto Sabin in Corso Vercelli, where the president (appointed at 12) was always late. Here citizens were able to start voting around 4.30 pm. There are also those who write to Mirror of the times: «I am 67 years old and I have always voted, but I have never encountered such gross disorganization in the management of the electoral machine».
In the morning the Torino Esposizioni sorting center also had its work cut out for it: many called due to the insufficient number of cards sent by the Ministry. Three “caravans” (the operation requires that officials be escorted by police) set off for the three most uncovered polling stations. But they are also the urns of records: that of Saturday and those away from home. For them the scrutineers are all students: “Here the turnout is high already in the afternoon.” How high it was in some “lucky” seats: one for all that of Corso Marconi in San Salvario. In the Vallette the picture is of a different color: an hour and a half after the opening, only 30 people had shown up at the Nino Costa. And to vote yesterday, citizens requested 375 identity cards and 2900 duplicate cards.
And then there are the candidates. Pentenero voted in his Casalborgone, after a day of weddings and dog cuddles; Disabato, in Collegno, who preferred a tour of the polling stations and a dinner with the family to padel; and Frediani. Today it will be the turn of Costanzo and Cirio. Tomorrow, at 2pm, the counting begins to find out the name of the new governor of the Piedmont Region.
