Is Clinton Victory Report Affecting N.J. Primary? Sanders Voters Say No

As voters headed to the polls in New Jersey to cast ballots in the Democratic and Republican primaries Tuesday, a heavy emphasis was on encouraging the state's undeclared voters to get involved.

And according to election officials, it's been working.

"We've had a great turnout today," said Marie Peterson, assistant supervisor of the Ocean County Board of Elections. "Our phones have been ringing all day with a lot of voters checking polling locations, and asking about voting as an unaffiliated voter."

"It's been very steady," she said.

While social media has been lighting up with voters' declarations of love for their candidates, it's unclear how that passion is translating at the polls, especially in the wake of the article Monday evening from the Associated Press declaring that Hillary Clinton had wrapped up enough delegates to earn the Democratic nomination over Bernie Sanders. 

But some voters said they were not deterred by the report.

"It did not sway my vote in any way shape or form," said Chris Dennick of Manahawkin, an unaffiliated voter who declared as a Democrat to cast his vote for Sanders in the presidential primary. "I knew I was voting for Bernie for a very long time."

He did criticize the report, however.

"I was maybe shocked or surprised -- maybe appalled is the right word -- to see that being done the day before the last primary this year," Dennick said. "It's a major factor because this is the biggest primary day besides Super Tuesday. New Jersey has 126 delegates, California has 400, and if he wins those, they get him close" to the nomination, Dennick said. 

"There's a lot going on in this election and for AP to do what they did yesterday reinforces that whole view that Hillary is the establishment candidate," he said. "It could be viewed as a way to dissuade Bernie voters (from going to the polls), but it also could be construed as a way to dissuade Hillary voters."

"It's tough to say who it might affect more," Dennick said.

Sarah Zwerko of Bridgewater, who cast her ballot at 8:15 a.m., said she is not concerned about the impact of the AP declaration. 

"Bernie has had recent success in states such as West Virginia, and I feel that they are jumping the gun," said Zwerko, who said she voted for Sanders. "It's not over till the last vote is counted. Because of that, I found it especially important to be part of that vote. My one vote could make the difference."

Noreen Carbain of Brick said she came out to the Brick P.A.L. to cast her vote for Hillary Clinton in spite of the AP report for the same reason: "because you never know." 

Carbain,  who said she had been settled on Clinton for a while,  said she prefers Clinton because of her stances on women's issues and the poor. 

"I believe in helping the poor," she said. "Nobody comes out of the womb saying 'I want to be poor.' "

Elizabeth Bova of Brick cast her vote for Trump.

"I'm a fiscal conservative, " she said. "I don't like her (Clinton's) spending policies.

"We have to help the poor but there has to be an end," she said, saying assistance should be a temporary measure for those in need.  "There's no way our government can provide everything for everyone."

Bova also said she felt Trump's business experience and the fact that he is "not a career politician" make him stand out.
"I don't believe everything he says but he's the best candidate of the two (Trump and Clinton)," she said. 

Greg Buono, 19, who is voting in his first election,  and his mother, Taressa Post had come out specifically because of Sanders. 

"If it was just Hillary and Trump I wouldn't be voting," said Post, who said she had always voted Republican in the past. "He is old school but new school at the same time," she said, adding that while he has progressive stances on many issues he also understands politics and foreign policy,  as well as how to behave.

Trump is "not classy," Post said. "He's too brash.  He's not presidential."

Buono expressed doubts that Trump will do what will benefit the country.

"He's filed for bankruptcy four times, and while he kept making millions,  his employees and others were suffering," he said. 
"After all these years of taking care of himself first how are we all of a sudden supposed to believe  he will take care of 350 million Americans?"

Buono, who said he has been following the Democrats for the last few years, said he likes Sanders because he has clear stances on issues.

"Even if you're not a Bernie supporter you know where he stands," Buono said. "People say his ideas are too far-fetched, but saying we'll build a wall and make another country pay for it isn't? At least he (Sanders) had a plan."

Post agreed, saying it's why she chose to affiliate with the Democratic Party after voting for Republicans consistently.

"For once we have a real choice," she said.

Dennick expressed concern that in Ocean County, where there are more unaffiliated voters (203,705) than registered Republicans (110,323) and registered Democrats (72,392) combined, that the process for declaring an affiliation could be confusing.

In Ocean County, unaffiliated voters wishing to declare a party affiliation must sign a form at the polling place. Forms for those choosing to declare as Democrats are pink, while blue forms are used for those choosing to declare Republican.

"I think the way they did it with the color of the slips could be confusing," he said. "You've got the colors backwards. I had to pause to read it to make sure I was signing the right one."

Since the 2000 election, the color red has been associated with the Republican party, while blue has been associated with Democrats -- a result, according to The Verge, of the New York Times and USA Today publishing color maps showing which states had gone to George W. Bush and which had gone to Al Gore. 

"The Times spread used red for Republicans because 'red begins with r, Republican begins with r,' said the senior graphics editor Archie Tse, 'it was a more natural association.' "

The Verge article also notes that during the 1976 election, NBC debuted its first election map on the air, with bulbs that turned red for states won by Democrat Jimmy Carter and blue for states won by Republican Gerald Ford. "This original color scheme was based on Great Britain's political system, which used red to denote the more liberal party," the article said.

Peterson, the assistant supervisor who has been with the Ocean County Board of Elections for 18 years, said Ocean County has been using blue forms for those declaring Republican and pink for those declaring as Democrats "for as long as I have been here." 

"I know what you're saying," she said of the concern that the colors might be confusing. "It was not geared toward anything. It's the first time I've had the question posed to me."

"It is clearly indicated on there which party is which," Peterson said.