MASSPIRG In The News

'Energy, excitement' among young voters

As Americans head to the polls today, young voters across SouthCoast predict their peers will turn out in record numbers, possibly playing a deciding role in the race for president.

Vanessa Wright, a campus organizer with the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group at UMass Dartmouth, said students have registered in record numbers for this election both locally and across Massachusetts and are eager to cast their votes.

"Everyone on campus is really excited about this historic election," she said. "We have been tabling every day and students have been signing pledge cards saying they will vote on Election Day.

"Nationally, I think the effect of young people voting for the first time will be huge. This is the first important election for a lot of them as well as the first time voting for many."

At UMass Dartmouth, university officials and student groups worked with MassPIRG to register 1,575 people in a national, nonpartisan New Voters Project.

"We registered only 600 people for the election in 2004," Ms. Wright said. "Across the state, we registered 11,900 students in Massachusetts alone. There is real energy and excitement among young voters."

At Bristol Community College in Fall River, Alex Robertson, who organized a similar campaign, said he believes the youth vote will play an important part in this election.

"We have been calling people, reminding them to vote and asking them to text their friends. I would say 90 percent of them will vote. The theme we are hearing is that young people want politicians to pay attention to them," Mr. Robertson said.

Nineteen-year-old Leandra Sharron of Pittsfield was one of those who signed up at the UMass Dartmouth drive.

"I'm very excited to be voting for the first time, and I'm voting for Obama," Ms. Sharron said. "Tax is the big issue for me. I'm poor and my family needs a tax break. I think that a lot of rich people have been having a free ride and I don't like it. Obama is the guy for the job, but he is the lesser of two evils. They both need more class the way they are attacking each other. But Obama will win by a mile."

Another UMass Dartmouth student voting for the first time is Laura Macomber of Natick. "I'm voting for Obama because I think he's the breath of fresh air that the country needs," she said. "He is highly intelligent, personable and family-oriented. That is very important to me. Tax is also an issue for me. I'm not interested in giving tax breaks for those who don't need them. Money is like fertilizer. It has to be spread around."

On foreign policy, Ms. Macomber said she wants to see the troops out of Iraq. "I have friends there. We have to leave but in a smart way."

She said she is confident about the outcome of today's election. "Obama will win, and it won't be as close as some people think because of (Sen. John McCain's) VP pick, which he only did to get the Hillary vote and instead it only ticked them off."

Isaiah Burnett, 21, of New Bedford is another first-time voter. "I'm voting for Obama," he said. "McCain is more of the same. He voted with Bush 90 percent of the time. That's no good."

Race will not be the deciding factor in the election, Mr. Burnett said. "It's more than color. The economy is in a bad spot, and we need a lot right now. The big issue is the economy, definitely, then jobs. Especially around here."

Jennifer Girouard, of New Bedford, who teaches first grade at the Parker School, said she is expecting a big turnout from first-time voters.

"A lot of people I know who have never voted before are coming out for this election," she said. "I think people are ready for a change and a government with an open mind."

Ms. Girouard added that, "as a teacher, I hope that they look at standardized testing. I think that No Child Left Behind places an unreasonable burden on teachers."

As for the issue of race, Ms. Girouard said it is only one aspect of this presidential campaign. "Age and race and gender are all coming into play for the first time."

John Raposo of New Bedford, who was playing a guitar at Custom House Square on Monday while passing out leaflets for the Victory Baptist Church, said he feels no loyalty to either party but will vote for Sen. McCain.

"I base my vote on moral standards and I think Obama goes with what the crowd is saying. He has no backbone. McCain loves his country. But it doesn't matter if the president is black, white or a woman as long as they can run the country," he said. "I think that the majority of Americans will cast their vote based on who they think can do that best."

Scott Barrett, a registered independent, said that, as a Christian, he, too, will go with Sen. McCain. "But it looks like Obama if you go with the polls," he said. "My prayers go with whoever gets in. They're not a king, so they have to go with the political wind. Personally, I feel the country has taken a wrong direction but, of course, my religious beliefs weigh into that. What a time to be alive, though. It's historic."

An analysis of party enrollment in New Bedford and surrounding towns shows that 49.7 percent of voters are independents with 39.9 percent registered as Democrats and 9.6 percent as Republicans. Every town from Westport to Wareham has seen an increase in the number of registered voters in comparison to the 2004 presidential election.

Contact Don Cuddy at doncuddy@s-t.com