Young voters will have a big say in the outcome of the upcoming election.
In the 2008 presidential primaries, the youth vote more than doubled, according to the website for the non-partisan group, Student PIRG.
“I think it will equate itself to a tremendous turnout,” said Contra Costa County Clerk Steve Wier, who is in charge of registering new voters. “Everything inside of me says this is going to be a record breaker.
“This [election] seems to resonate with voters.”
Of the nearly 30,000 new voters who registered in Contra Costa County since the end of May, more than 18,000 registered as Democrat, compared to just over 2,300 who registered as Republican, according to the county’s Election Division website.
“I wasn’t planning on voting until I found out Obama was running,” said DVC student Burt Weaver, 19.
The big surge in favor of Democrats was much in evidence on the campus.
On a recent Tuesday, Republican Club President Hilary Castles and club member Justin Reyes had little luck registering fellow party members in the main Quad. On the people he had registered, most registered as Democrats, Reyes said.
“I originally wasn’t going to vote,” said Norman Paukert, 21, who plans to vote for Sen. Barack Obama. “I would be really unhappy if McCain won. In previous elections there was nobody I could get behind.”
Nationwide, young voters favored Obama to John McCain, 61 percent to 32 percent, in a USA Today/MTV/Gallup poll that surveyed voters ages 18 to 29 earlier this month.
Informal interviews conducted last week by the Inquirer and students from the Journalism 120 class, found only nine of the 93 DVC students surveyed, plan to vote for McCain.
Most expressed similar concerns for the country and had similar reasons for choosing to vote for Obama. Many said they have great hope for Obama and see him as an honest and eloquent speaker who will bring positive change.
Calling Obama “uplifting,” Naazira Booze, 18, said, “He’s very educated, he knows what he’s talking about, and he’s a positive man.”
Student Jillian Uribe pointed to a characteristic common to all past
“They’ve all be white men,” she said. “I think everybody has gotta think change when they think Obama.”
McCain however, is viewed as uninspiring, out of touch and someone who will continue to lead this country in the same direction it is heading.
“[McCain] is way too old to be running for president, and his views don’t match my own,” said student Shahin Naima about McCain.
“In the last debate they showed McCain’s reaction,” said Marjan Sharifi. “He acted very juvenile, he made faces.
“He just scares me.”
Many of the students said they are concerned about the economy.
“When I was trying to find a part-time job it took me a lot longer than usual,” said Sharifi.
“My pay has definitely gone down,” said Kaitlin Kopp, 20, who wonders whether she’ll have enough money to pay for a four-year school. She plans to vote for Obama.
“I know my vote makes a difference,” she said, “and I am hopeful for a better change.”