The Samford Crimson

Issue date: 2/13/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Jordan Jarvis

Super Tuesday came and went, and while it made an impact on who will become the presidential candidates, it did not have the definitive answer that some political experts expected.  

In the Alabama primaries, Sen. Barack Obama (D) claimed 56.1 percent of the votes, while Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) received 40.7 percent.

Results from Tuesday have caused a few changes in the Republican Party candidacy. Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, ended his  presidential bid just two days after the Super Tuesday elections.

“This isn’t an easy decision. I hate to lose,” Romney said on Thursday, as reported by FoxNews.com.

This course of action was beneficial to Republican front-runner John McCain, as it moved him closer to receiving the GOP nomination.

McCain has accumulated 723 total delegates, far surpassing the next opponent Huckabee.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D) was behind Obama with their total number of pledged delegates amounting to 924 and 986 respectively.

After this week’s Potomac primaries, Obama is now the Democratic front runner with 1,223 delegates.

Clinton follows close behind with 1,198 delegates. McCain continued to solidify his front-runner status by sweeping all three states in the primary, which include Maryland, Virginia and District of Columbia.

In a random campus poll, a mere seven out of 49 Samford students  voted in the presidential primary elections.

Difficulties such as busy schedules, not having applied for absentee ballots and unawareness were many of the excuses.

Although the majority of students polled are not involved in politics, there are a select few that do keep up with the current political state of affairs.

One student, junior journalism and mass communications major Megan Christians, is excited with the uncertain results stemming from Super Tuesday’s elections.

“It makes it harder to know who to vote for, because (candidates) have a lot of support behind them. They’re going to have to campaign a lot harder. It’s what the political process should be,” Christians said.

So the question remains, why are so many Samford students apathetic to the voting process regarding presidential elections?

“The literature on this (situation) indicates that the younger generation tends to think politics is ‘not for them.’ Politicians rarely tend to focus on issues necessary for the youth vote, and politicians tend to focus on older voters, who vote in much higher numbers,” Ryan Galloway, assistant professor of communication studies, said.

Contrary to the small number of people who voted in the primaries on “Super Tuesday,” 41 out of 49 students polled said they planned to vote in the presidential elections in the fall.

The official day of election for the presidential race is Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008. The total number of electoral votes available is 538, with a majority of 270 needed to win.

In the occurrence of neither party reaching a majority, the decision will be left up to the House of Representatives.

Galloway believes it’s especially important for the younger generation to be involved in the political process because “some of the most important issues facing the nation directly affect those about to graduate from college.”

“Voting is the best way to allow your voice to be heard and to make sure politicians know you are paying attention to the election,” Galloway said.

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