How Is Sierra Madre Voting Today?

While poll lines weren’t out the door at this morning, there was a fairly steady trickle of people headed in to cast their ballots. Patch caught up with a few residents outside the polls to see how they voted and which issues were most important to them.

Tennyson and Virginia Warren took a trip to the polls together. For Virginia, the most important issue was that would generate funding for cancer research and smoking cessation methods. “I’d like to see fewer people smoking,” she said. Virginia was also in favor of Measures H and L, the hotel and landfill taxes, respectively.

Tennyson was in favor of Measure A, saying that there would be a better balance on the Board of Education if there were representatives for each particular area in the Pasadena Unified School District. “The idea that you can have seven people from one area [on the Board of Education], that’s not really right,” he said. 

Tennyson also commented on “how dirty the Assembly race got,” referencing Chris Holden and Victoria Rusnak specifically. “It was kind of funny, seeing Democrats go after each other. Usually it’s the Republicans fighting.”

Resident John Boyden said he was mostly interested in voting today because of the new non-Republican district that Sierra Madre now falls in. He voted for Judy Chu. “I always vote for Democrats, and they always loose,” said Boyden, adding that he was happy that Republican David Dreier was out.

Boyden voted yes for Measure A, saying that he believes it would be better to give every sub-district their own representative. However, he added that he is “disgusted by the PUSD” and their handling of the yet-to-be-built middle school building on the campus.

Carolynn, a Sierra Madre resident who asked that her last name be withheld, headed to the polls to keep Democrat U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein in office. Carolynn is a supporter of her liberal views and her take on human rights. She also believes Feinstein's experience in the Senate will give her more pull. “[Feinstein’s] number of years in the Senate give her more seniority… and if she loses her seat, we lose power,” she said.

Janice Baggs of Sierra Madre said that she decided just last night to vote yes on Measure A. She said her decision was swayed by all of the opinion pieces published in newspapers for and against the Measure.

For Diane Harris, the most important issue on today’s ballot was Prop 29. “I voted yes. Cigarettes, I can’t stand them,” she said. “If we make them expensive enough, maybe people will stop smoking… and we could always use the extra money.”