Voters Coming Up Short on Ballot Box Promises
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - Just days ahead of the Nov. 2 election, Bay Area residents vowed to vote. However, if they were like most Californians, they likely wouldn't show up at their local polling stations.
For all of the money spent on campaigns, not to mention the time candidates spent trying to win over would-be voters, the numbers suggested most of it fell on deaf ears.
KCBS' Mike Sugerman reports from his travels, About the Bay:
"Do you plan to vote?" KCBS' Mike Sugerman queried one Bay Area woman.
"On what?"
"In the election."
"Yes, oh yes, absolutely," she declared.
Others were quicker to respond to Sugerman's question.
"Do you plan to vote?" he asked two men.
"Yes," said one man. "Absolutely," the other echoed.
Sugerman figured somebody was either lying, or he simply asked the wrong people.
Predictions suggested 10 million Californians would vote Nov. 2.
"It's still less than half of all those who are eligible," pointed out the Field Poll's Mark DiCamillo. "People who are eligible to register are all citizens who are over the age of 18, and there's something in excess of 22 million of those Californians out there."
17 million Californians were registered to vote. Even if each registered voter turned out, it would only amount of 58% of the eligible California voter pool.
Sugerman came across one enthusiastic woman who had a penchant for registering to vote.
"Yes, I am a registered voter here," she said. "As well as Texas and my original home state, which is Connecticut.
For the record, she would face jail time and a hefty fine if she voted in all three states.
Other weren't registered at all.
"I moved about three years ago and I forgot to register and I don't like any of the candidates," reasoned one man. "No one's inspired me to run out and do anything."
If nothing else, people were being honest.
"Both sides kind of bug me a little bit. A combination of laziness and not very motivated," a man explained his reluctance to vote.
Was society to blame?
"You know honestly, I just don't think it's like built into the culture enough," offered another.
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