BENKELMAN -- Dundy County voters Tuesday approved a property tax not to exceed 4.84 cents to update the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system at Dundy County Hospital in Benkelman. And at the polls in Arapahoe, voters said "yes" to a sales tax revenue/economic development question.

The Dundy County Hospital tax and the Arapahoe sales tax issue were the only ballot questions facing any voters throughout Southwest Nebraska, and they appear to be partially responsible for attracting voters to the polls. While other Southwest Nebraska counties report percentages of 20 to 31 percent, Dundy County officials report a whopping voter turnout -- by comparison -- of 43.6 percent. Furnas County reported a turnout of 28-29 percent.

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The new hospital tax in Dundy County is an extension of a similar tax that raised $150,000 for equipment purchases six year ago. The new tax will raise the same amount of money and will go away after fiscal year 2012-2013. The tax will be levied at a rate of 4.84 cents per $100 of valuation.

Hospital administrator Rita Jones said the HVAC system in the older part of the hospital facility is 40 years.

The issue passed by a vote of 381 for and 204 against.

In Arapahoe, voters were asked whether they want to allow the city to spend sales tax revenues for economic development purposes defined in the city's economic development plan adopted in 2006. Any excess revenue above the maximum amount allowed by state law would be transferred to the city's general fund to pay for infrastructure, parks, community promotion and public safety.

The vote was 184, yes; 46, no.

The tax questions and local races helped draw voters to the polls, but overall, voter turnout was not very impressive.

Frontier County voters seem to have placed second in the voting percentage race -- preliminary numbers indicate that 31 percent of its registered voters went to the polls. That county had a commissioner race, in District 1.

In Hayes County, 29 percent of registered voters showed up to cast ballots. That percentage rose to 33 percent in Precinct 1, where voters had to decide a county commissioner race. Neither figure is official yet, and neither includes absentee ballots.

Roughly 28-29 percent of Furnas County registered voters went to the polls, drawn again by a county commissioner issue.

About 28 percent of registered voters in Chase County cast ballots. One county commissioner race, in District 1, and one Upper Republican Natural Resources race, in Subdistrict 5, interested voters.

On the lower end of the spectrum were Hitchcock County, where 20.8 percent of voters went to the polls, and Red Willow County, where 20 percent of voters took time to go to the polls.

Area election results:

http://www.co.chase.ne.us/election.html

http://www.co.dundy.ne.us/content/election_results

http://www.co.frontier.ne.us/content/Election/inde...

http://www.co.hitchcock.ne.us/content/election_res...

http://www.furnascounty.ne.gov/index_html?page=/co...

http://www.hayescounty.ne.gov/content/election_res...

http://www.co.red-willow.ne.us/content/election_re...

State results:

http://www.sos.ne.gov/elec/2008/ElectNight/primary...