Across the country this past week, people made their way to the polls to take part in local elections. In Syracuse, this meant that all 17 representatives of the Onondaga County legislature would pick up where they left off and return to the their seats.

Among those re-elected was Joanie Mahoney, who will return for her third term as County Executive.

The Republican is estimated to have had around 60 percent of the votes, with a total of 40,897 votes. Recently, Mahoney has partnered with Governor Cuomo, making great strides for the county of Onondaga, such as investing $100 million towards improvements and buildings in the area.

Mahoney is also intending to lower property taxes by around 25 percent as she continues to serve as Executive, in conjunction with creating a $50 million amphitheater.

This amphitheater was a big part of Mahoney’s campaign because she believes that it will be a great staple to have in Onondaga as it will expand the county’s popularity, increasing business in local shops, restaurants, and businesses altogether.

The newly elected Onondaga Town Clerk, however, is a new face in this position, but not in politics overall, as she has previously served as Lysander Town Clerk. Republican Lisa Dell has won the votes, with much promised devotion to the general public. She has entered this position with the intentions of expanding the friendliness and efficiency of the office.

In this year’s Onondaga County elections, only one in four registered voters cast went to the polls, making the voter turnout just above 25 percent, according to an article done by syracuse.com. Similarly, in 2014 people only 17 percent of registered voters between the ages of 18 and 24 participated in election day in Onondaga County.

A recent poll by The Dolphin on Twitter found that 66 percent of students at Le Moyne did not vote in the recent election. Of the 41 students that responded to the survey, 34 percent said they did vote this year.

Reasoning for low voter turnout could be for a variety of reasons. Since there is no presidential, governor, or senate races, many voters may see local elections as less of a priority. Local elections also tend to be covered less by the mass media, and students are therefore exposed less to the candidates and the roles that they may play in their lives.

Additionally, of the 17 representative seats that were voted on, 9 candidates ran unopposed, therefore not creating a high profile election.

Despite the low voter turnout, junior Kayla Burt believes that our right to vote in even local elections is not something that should be taken for granted.

“I feel like it’s pretty important,” said Burt. “It’s great to be able to choose the people who will be creating laws that will be effecting you. It’s a privilege that people in other places don’t have, and I think that we should take advantage of that opportunity.”