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Community Corner

Western Springs … the Nation's "Votingest" City?

In 1976, the U.S. League of Women Voters sponsored a Bicentennial Year contest to identify the city or town with the highest percentage of registered voters and highest voter turnout. Guess who won.

As part of the country’s 200th birthday celebration, the League of Women Voters sponsored a nationwide contest to recognize the city with the largest percentage of registered voters and largest voter turnout. Awards were also given to towns that achieved the greatest increases in these categories between 1974 and 1976. Two hundred and sixty-eight cities entered the contest. 

The Western Springs Bicentennial Commission took up the challenge in April of 1976. Soon, local Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops were being organized to get the word out. Also involved was the local chapter of The League of Women Voters, the women’s club, business association, and village officials. The presidential election, slated for November 1976, provided an additional impetus to get more voters registered. See second photo. 

Subsequent figures showed Western Springs as having registered 95% of all eligible voters and 92.5% of them going to the polls in November.  The town also achieved a tremendous increase in voter turnout … increasing from just 66% in 1972 to 92% in 1974. In contrast, the national voter turn-out was just 54% in 1974. 

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On December 23, the Western Springs Bicentennial Commission received a long distance phone call from the League of Women Voters, which had been monitoring voter turnouts across the country. They announced that our little town had taken first place and would be presented with a plaque. And, as expected, those who were directly involved began celebrating even before the plaque arrived.  See third photo.

On January 17, 1977, representatives of the Bicentennial Commission, the Women’s Club, and the local chapter of The League of Women Voters presented a plaque to Village President Robert Lavidge, along with a white banner declaring our village as “America’s Votingest City”.  See fourth photo.

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As for the presidential election results, Carter won a narrow victory over Ford, whose presidency was saddled with a slow economy and the pardoning of his predecessor, Richard Nixon.

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