Bay Area Voters Ready To Make A Difference In California Primary
MORAGA (KPIX 5) -- With the state primary election moved to an earlier date in the coming election year, California may actually have some say in who will be the Democratic nominee.
That possibility raises the question: Who among the remaining candidates might spark the interest of the California voters?
At St. Mary's College it's not surprising that a lot of the young voters would be supporting the more liberal candidates.
"I believe Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. I feel like we are the ones who want, like, more change to happen," said student Eliana Asfini.
But Politics Professor Steve Woolpert says Democrats are also struggling to decide who has the best chance in taking on President Trump.
"Everybody in the Democratic Party is thinking, 'Who is the most electable?'" Professor Woolpert said. "And where they disagree is whether it needs to be someone who is going to appeal to the base of the party which is diverse and far left, or the undecided, middle of the road voters in the swing states that Trump won."
Student Blake Singewald likes Bernie Sanders, but is concerned that if he didn't win the primary, his supporters may help President Trump.
"Because last time, a lot of Bernie Sanders supporters voted for [Trump] just to spite Hillary Clinton," Singewald said. "So maybe we'll see that again."
But in downtown Moraga where the demographic is a bit older, Kabir Taymuree said he likes the fact that Joe Biden comes off kind of bland.
"That's the stability, the stability part of it, yes," he said. "Biden would bring that, yeah."
Moraga resident Michael Robertson was reluctantly considering Biden, but is excited that businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has entered the race.
"I totally am. I think it opens it up to people like myself who are independent, middle of the road, you know? Who have somewhat of a progressive side but also have a business side," Robertson said.
In Oakland, Biden has some support in the African American community because of his connection to former President Barack Obama. But Lisa Kilgore told KPIX 5 that among her friends, there is really only one consideration.
"The major decision is anybody but Trump," Kilgore said with a laugh.
There's a long way to go and a lot can happen between now and March 3, 2020, but it is nice to know that California's primary vote may actually mean something this time.
