LAWRENCE: Leaving the polls, voters explain their choices

By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
   For some Lawrence voters, Tuesday’s presidential contest between Democratic Sen. Barack Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain represented a once-in-a-lifetime chance to elect a black man to the nation’s highest office.
   Among other motivations cited, voters said the election was a chance to repudiate the policies of President George W. Bush. And for still others, it came down to who they trusted to guide the nation for the next four years.
   Those are the messages that came through in a series of informal conversations with voters — young and old — as they left Lawrence’s polling places Tuesday.
   Patricia Brown, 55, said she voted for Sen. Obama because she believes in change.
   ”We realize the country has been led into an economic crisis,” said Ms. Brown, as she and her two sons left the Slackwood Fire Company, where they voted. “(Sen. Obama’s) plans and ideology suggest the possibility of change. It won’t happen overnight, but he presents the best plan.”
   ”We have never had (a black) president,” she said. “It will energize some (blacks) to strive harder. It will encourage us to know that we can do all things. It will give us a sense of self-confidence. I believe it takes perseverance.”
   Ms. Brown’s son, Bakheer Brown, said he agreed with his mother’s comments.
   ”In all reality, (Sen. Obama) has the better ideas for making us a better country,” Mr. Brown, 30, said. “All the hype on ethnicity — that’s not our sole purpose (in voting for Sen. Obama). It’s more to the purpose at hand. He will try to make it better for us.”
   However, 28-year-old Erica Handler said that while she supported Sen. Obama because she believes the country needs change, she also said she voted for him because she wants to be able to look at her son and tell him that “this could be you.”
   Ms. Handler noted that during the course of the campaign, Sen. Obama’s message did not change. Sen. McCain’s message was “inconsistent,” she said, adding that he would frequently change his point of view on issues.
   It’s difficult not to say that she voted for Sen. Obama “because he looks like me,” because it’s true, she said. But it also proves that “you can have diversity,” she said, adding that the world is ready for change and she is “really, really proud” of her country.
   Esteisy Estrada, 18, said she voted for Sen. Obama on the advice of some of the customers of the Morrisville, Pa., hot dog stand where she works. Ms. Estrada also cast her vote at the polling place at the Slackwood Fire Company.
   Ms. Estrada acknowledged that she has not followed the election on television or in the newspapers, but she would ask the customers what they thought about the election. They advised her to vote for the Democratic Party nominee.
   ”Sen. Obama seems like a nice guy,” she said, adding that one thing she did not like about Sen. McCain was what she viewed as an anti-immigrant stance. She said she was born in the United States, but her parents are legal immigrants from Guatemala.
   Ms. Estrada said she is hopeful that Sen. Obama will “do something” for the immigrants, who are hard workers, adding that “I hope I made the right choice” voting for the Democrat.
   At the Lawrenceville Fire Company, an 80-year-old voter who declined to give her name said she voted for Sen. Obama because she does not like President Bush and that he “did everything wrong.” She said she thought Sen. Obama would try to do better.
   But there were other voters who were able to separate Sen. McCain from President Bush, and cast their votes for the Republican nominee.
   ”I voted for Sen. McCain because of what he stands for,” said 42-year-old Dave Hagadorn, who voted at the Lawrenceville Fire Company.
   ”The Democrats will raise taxes higher than they are,” Mr. Hagadorn said. “Plus, there is Sen. McCain’s experience — he’s a (military) veteran and he has experience in the Senate.”
   Robert Sargent, 42, also cast his ballot for Sen. McCain at the Lawrenceville Fire Company polling place. He said he voted a straight Republican ticket, in part because he was upset with the Democrats for mishandling matters at the state government level.
   ”Sen. McCain has served his country and the voters that elected him,” Mr. Sargent said. “Sen. Obama hasn’t done any of that. I think Sen. Obama’s views are borderline socialist.”
   Joyce Stilwell, 70, said that although she is registered Democrat, she pushed the button for Sen. McCain for several reasons — not the least, being his character. That was her main reason for voting for the Arizona senator.
   Ms. Stilwell, who voted at the Slackwood Fire Company, said she liked Sen. McCain’s tax policies. She said she did not agree with Sen. Obama’s proposed tax policies, and she did not believe he would be able to provide safety and security for the United States.
   But Bill Rader, 54, who also voted at the Slackwood Fire Company, said he supported Sen. Obama precisely because of the Democratic Party’s policies. 
   ”I don’t like the Republicans’ war policy,” Mr. Rader said. “I have a nephew who is in the (military) service. He has been to Iraq two times, and I saw the damage it did. The Democrats try to stay out of war, but the Republicans do not. They don’t care.”
   He added, “I don’t know Sen. Obama very well. None of us do.” But “in this particular case,” he would still prefer to see Sen. Obama in office because he does not want to see the middle class get “screwed.”