Voters weigh in on election process

The election as an extension of one before

Milton Washington, an orphan in Seoul, South Korea, was adopted by a U.S. military family and moved to the United States at age 10.

Today he is an accomplished artist who added a fitness center upstairs from his studio. Rokmil Studios includes collaborations with the Emmy-nominated Ruth Carter.

Washington described being shocked by the efficiency of his voting process Tuesday in Harlem, New York, where he was able to cast his ballot in five minutes.

But it was not his most memorable experience as a voter. That was when he voted for Barack Obama for president, remembering the glee he felt walking into the booth.

That may have changed today.

This election “might even be more memorable now just because of the stakes …  You know, some say democracy versus totalitarianism. And [it is] a Black and Asian woman, so I’m more nervous now than I was for Obama. This [election] is part two of that [one], an extension.”

— Marley Joseph

Family ties in the voting booth

Jose Martinez, 54, cast his presidential vote Tuesday for Vice President Kamala Harris — whom he referred to as “the lady” — with his deceased mother in mind.

Martinez’s mother cleaned the Oval Office for eight years under the Bush Administration and for two years under the Obama Administration. He said his mother “saw the president every morning.”

“My mother worked for Democrats and Republicans, and she told us — make sure to never vote Republican,” Martinez said. “She died three years ago.”

Martinez noted that “family” was the most influential factor on his vote at Ida B. Wells Middle School in the Takoma neighborhood in Washington, D.C. He is more passionate about voting for the Harris-Walz campaign than the former Biden-Harris ticket because of his mother’s personal relationship with President Joe Biden.

“My mother always said if you’re voting for Biden, he’s not gonna make it to the end of the term,” Martinez said. “She knew him very well.”

As a Washington resident since 1987, Martinez said he “saw a lot of presidents.”

“They come in and out, and they never make big changes …  We will see about the lady,” Martinez said. “We want to try a woman now.”

—Shreya Jyotishi

Md. voter: ‘Food-wise, kid-wise,’ Trump is better

Victoria Nelson, 34, said this is her third time voting for Donald Trump for president. Nelson said she cast her vote Tuesday morning before heading to the mall at Prince George’s in Hyattsville, Maryland.  “This is my own personal decision that I came to by watching the news and seeing what he’s done for us over the last couple of years,” Nelson said.

A Maryland resident and mother, Nelson said a child-care plan from Trump is one of the main reasons she backs him. (Here is a breakdown of the candidates’ child tax credits.)

 “If he becomes president again he will help us more, and I think that in his last term as president, he helped us,”  Nelson said. “Food-wise, kids-wise, he has helped us and he has a plan to help us more, so that’s why I voted for him.”

— Payton Anderson

Retiree: Trump a ‘Horror Show’

Amelia Davis, 74, says that there wasn’t a single issue that brought her to the polls but rather a person: Former President Donald Trump.

“Donald Trump’s a horror show,” said the retired teacher from Ewing, New Jersey, whose husband joined her at the polls.

Davis said she had a reason to vote in person.  “Well, I’m old and I like the process,” she said. “I think it’s important. I’ve voted in every election since I was 18.”  She also recalls marching in the past for abortion rights.

Davis described her distaste for the Republican candidate, saying that he will be terrible for the country. She expressed concern about climate change and how the issue could take a back seat under Trump. ““God help us if Donald Trump wins,” she said.

— Thomas Weaverling

Abortion: ‘That’s the one thing that governs who I vote for’

Robert Westwater, 71, said a candidate’s stance on abortion rights is the only thing he considers when voting. Wearing an American flag-patterned, button-down shirt, Westwater, at the Mall at Prince George’s in Hyattsville, Maryland, said he cast his vote for Trump.

Westwater, an Indiana native now  living in Maryland,  sent his mail-in ballot two weeks before election day. When asked about former President Trump’s other policies, Westwater said that he cares only about one thing, and agrees wholeheartedly with Trump’s restrictive stance on reproductive rights. 

“It’s a human life, not a dog, a human.” Westwater said.

– Sophia Carroll

Education on the line

George Mason University student Chima Korie voted up the street from his house in Washington, D.C., with the Department of Education in mind.

The 21-year-old neuroscience student cited talks among Donald Trump and his campaign staff of restructuring and closing the Department of Education as his primary policy concern. Korie, who identifies as an Independent, voted for the Harris-Walz ticket.

“Since I’m a student, I’m interested in education, of course,” he said. “But my career path … involves me still being in school, so I really don’t want disruptions with that.”

—Shreya Jyotishi