For those of you who might take offense over a scolding because you didn’t bother to vote in Saturday’s municipal election in Amarillo …

… that’s too damn bad!

You’ve got it coming.

A little more than 15,000 registered cast ballots in the Amarillo City Council election. Roughly half of them voted early. The remainder waited — as I did — to vote on Saturday.

We’re going to hear some bitching and griping from Amarillo residents about the “power” of Amarillo Matters, a political action committee that backed a competent and qualified slate of candidates for the council; they all won by substantial margins.

If Amarillo Matters had all that stroke, packed all that punch, why didn’t more residents take a few minutes of time to cast their ballot? Why didn’t those who took umbrage at Amarillo Matters’ push to back its slate energize their own counter-movement?

Where was the turnout among those who supported Amarillo Matters and those who opposed the PAC?

The city has more than 100,000 residents registered to vote. The turnout for Saturday’s election fit the norm for Amarillo. Call it whatever you wish: abysmal, dismal, pitiful, pathetic, measly … whatever. Any of those descriptions will work. All of them would work, too!

The candidates who won will comprise an entirely new City Council. They will take office soon and embark on a mission to guide the city, to set government policy and then — I’ll presume — let the newly hired city manager, Jared Miller, implement those policies.

I do not want to hear any of them talk publicly about a “mandate.”

The way I see it, they got nothing of the sort based on the turnout. A majority of a tiny minority of registered voters cast their ballots in favor of the individuals who won.

Look at it this way, as well: That percentage of turnout declines even more dramatically when you factor in the residents who live here but who aren’t even registered to vote.

Did this group of business leaders — Amarillo Matters — exercise inordinate influence over the election results? No. If it did, then the city would have had to count a lot more ballots than it did.

If you’re upset at the results of the election — but didn’t bother to vote — I suggest with all due respect that you keep your trap shut.