Just over half of all registered voters in Greenwich went to the polls Tuesday to cast their vote in Connecticut’s Presidential Primary election. By the time the polls closed at 8 p.m., 10,749 votes had been counted, making for an unusually high turnout of 51.73 percent.
Among that number was a batch of voters who took part in their first–ever election.
For Peter Negrea, 18, and Henry Baund, also 18, it took all of three minutes to submit their ballot at their respective polling stations. But they say the day was a long time coming.
“The things that are being decided right now by the politicians, whom people over 18 are electing, are affecting and will affect those who are under 18,” said Negrea moments after voting at Greenwich High School. “They [the youth] will have to deal with it. It doesn’t matter what side you are on, there is going to be some issue that depends on the future.”
Negrea, who is involved on many student-led boards and is president of the Greenwich Safe Rides program, says the voting age should be lowered to 16 to allow the younger generation to have a say. He cited as particular issues of concern the environment, the national debt, and foreign policy; what we do in each of these areas now, he said, will affect future generations.
“These are serious issues that everyone can agree will affect our future generations,” said Negrea. “To say someone at 16 is too young to vote, that is a poor excuse. If their reasoning is that they aren’t intelligent enough, well, that’s the same reason why they said blacks and women can’t vote.”
Meanwhile at Town Hall, Henry Baund recorded his vote with ease as a dozen workers from the Registrar of Voters helped residents through the streamlined process.
The only concern coming out of Town Hall was the limited parking, but Baund voted in the middle of the day when the polls were less crowded.
“The process was very easy,” said Baund. “It was unbureaucratic, I guess. I came in the middle of the day hoping there wouldn’t be too many people there.”
Baund said he would have participated in past elections had the voting age been lower.
“I think economic issues are extremely important now,” said Baund. “I also believe the voting age should be lowered, because when you’re 16, you are able to make a good decision. I don’t think there is a big difference in maturity between 16–year-olds and 18-year-olds.”
As turnout at the polls picked up around between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., Anthony Lopez, a special education aide at GHS and a former candidate for the DTC chair, made the event a family affair as he brought his three kids with him to vote at Julian Curtiss Elementary School.
He stressed the importance of Election Day as a teachable moment for his family.
“It’s good that voting is done in the schools because so many kids get to come by and see how important the process is,” said Lopez. “We all come vote as a family because it’s our civic duty. We watch and read a lot of politics at home and we have discussions about it. They understand as they grow up that they have a responsibility to come out and vote to have their voices heard.
“It’s always a smooth process and I’m excited to get my sticker.”
