A poll was conducted of Eastern Nazarene College students and staff members prior to the election to determine voting trends as well as any complications they may have faced in voting this year.
The poll questioned 100 random individuals about who they will or will not vote for in the 2016 Presidential Election. Those who said “yes” had the option of disclosing who they would vote for. Those who said “no” were asked what their reasoning was.
Of those polled, 62% said they planned on voting in the election, 33% said they did not, while the remaining 5% were unsure either of if they will vote or if they can.
Among those who planned on voting, the most popular candidate was Clinton, with 46% of the vote. Trump received 19% of the vote, and 14% voted for Johnson, while Stein received none.
Additionally, 6% of the voters claimed they will write in Sanders, and one voter even proposed ENC’s President Corlis McGee as a write-in candidate. Of those voting write-ins, one person is utilizing it as a method of freedom. Frankie Bruny stated that her vote is a stab against the media, saying, “My vote is to show that we have more options than just the two candidates that the news and other media chooses to celebrate.”
Thirty percent of those not voting were confronted with problems accessing absentee ballots. Some forgot to request for their ballots, while other students’ home states are far enough away that the ballot will not arrive in time. Others either never received their ballots or were unable to send them back.
Twenty-four percent of those not voting felt that there were no good choice in the election, while 15% were not interested.
Of those not voting, 18% were not registered to vote, and 15% are not U.S. citizens.
Finally, 3% of the non-voters do not have a valid state-issued ID, 6% feel the voting process in Massachusetts is too complicated, and one person is not old enough to vote.
Advisor’s Note: While the election has already occurred, this article is being published in the interest of giving our readers insight into perspectives of ENC students and their attitudes toward voting.