‘A lot at stake’ for young voters in 2020 race

Chapman students predicted Super Tuesday 2020 California Democratic Primary winner to be Senator Bernie Sanders.

The line to vote in the 2020 United States presidential primary wrapped around the building in the Argyros Forum March 3. MIA FORTUNATO Photo Editor

The line to vote wrapped at Chapman around the perimeter of Argyros Forum. The wait time totaled two hours. Still, students continued to exercise their right to vote in the 2020 United States presidential primary election March 3.

Senator Bernie Sanders won the California primary and received 186 delegates, according to The Associated Press as of March 8. Sanders was followed by Democratic candidate Joe Biden who received 148 California delegates. Though Sanders won the California primary, Biden won 10 out of 14 states. Senator Elizabeth Warren dropped out of the race March 5 after failing to win in any state including her home state Massachusetts. Representative Tulsi Gabbard remains in the race despite not winning a single state.

Primary elections took place in 14 states March 3 including Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont and Virginia. Democratic candidates Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar dropped out of the race prior to the Super Tuesday primaries, leaving Biden, Sanders, Warren, Michael Bloomberg and Gabbard in the running. Buttigieg, Klobuchar and Bloomberg have since given their endorsements to Joe Biden. Still, the race is far from over as 32 states have not held their primaries or caucuses.

While watching the results of the primary elections pour in on Super Tuesday Jelina Liu, a sophomore political science major, grew increasingly frustrated with the voting process. She never received her voting ballot in the mail, so Liu headed to the on-campus voting center.

Although Liu voted in the on-campus voting center, several of her friends struggled to vote due to class and work conflicts.

“I think that Election Day should be a holiday so everyone can come vote and not worry about getting in trouble with their boss and stuff like that because there are working class people who can’t vote because they’re at work,” Liu said.

Liu believes this election is critical due to the concern of climate change and the urgency of healthcare. “What’s important to realize is that so much is at stake in this election and it’s really not just a normal election,” Liu said. “(There are) not only normal things at risk, but our very existence as humans is at risk because of climate change. We have people in hospitals dying because they can’t afford healthcare, we have students who are drowning in student debt, so obviously there’s a lot at stake.”

Historically, the category of 18 to 29 year olds has had the lowest voter turnout. In the 2016 presidential election, 46.1 percent of 18 to 29 year olds voted, compared to 70.9 percent of 65 and older, according to the United States Census Bureau.

Sanders has been disappointed with receiving even less youth votes than expected this election cycle. “Have we been as successful as I would hope in bringing young people in? The answer is no,” Sanders said in a news conference at his campaign office in Burlington, Vermont.

Professor John Compton, the chair of Chapman’s Political Science Department, finds the dramatic turnaround in the results of this primary to be unprecedented in his memory. A comeback for Sanders seems highly unlikely due to moderates who have dropped out and endorsed Biden, he said.

“As recently as last week, Sanders looked to be a pretty strong favorite for the nomination,” Compton said. “Then all of a sudden, Biden won South Carolina by an unexpectedly large margin, and then two moderates, Klobuchar and Buttigieg, dropped out and both endorsed Biden. That totally changed the dynamic of the race.”

The Panther surveyed 100 random, anonymous students about which candidate would win the Democratic nomination. 73 students predicted Sanders would win the nomination, followed by Biden who received 16 votes. Six students selected Warren, five selected Bloomberg and Gabbard received zero votes. Though Liu believes the voting system needs to be amended, she urged her fellow college students to vote regardless of complications.

“People have literally died so that we can vote,” Liu said. “I really hope that everyone will exercise (the right to vote) because a lot of people in other countries don’t have that right.”