A broad cross-section of Californians came together Tuesday to
deliver Barack Obama an easy victory in the state with the nation’s
most electoral votes.
LOS ANGELES – A broad cross-section of Californians came together Tuesday to deliver Barack Obama an easy victory in the state with the nation’s most electoral votes.
Nine in 10 blacks, seven in 10 Latinos, more than half of white voters and a majority of Asians backed the Illinois Democrat, according to exit polls for Associated Press. Both men and women turned out for Obama, as did California voters of nearly every income level and educational background.
Young voters were among Obama’s strongest supporters. He also led strongly among other age groups except 65 and over, where the vote was split.
“It feels like Christmas Day,” said Andrea Torres, 30, after voting at a firehouse in San Francisco’s Mission District.
Obama’s widespread support marked a sharp turn away from the GOP among voters of all races compared to the 2004 presidential election.
The shift was smaller among white voters than others, but enough to mean a change in allegiance: Whites narrowly backed President Bush’s re-election but went by a similar margin for Obama this year.
Californians were not nearly as united on a ballot measure that would ban gay marriage in the state.
Blacks strongly voted for the ban, while whites narrowly opposed it. Latinos and Asians were split. Voters under 30 heavily opposed Proposition 8, while voters 65 and over supported the initiative. Age groups in between were split.
The ban on same-sex marriage was opposed by voters who graduated from college and those who said they never attended religious services. Those who said they attend religious services weekly heavily backed the ban.
Sharree Taylor, 22, of Richmond said she voted for Obama and in favor of Proposition 8. She described herself as a Christian.
“I’m one of those that go with the word of the Lord over civil rights,” Taylor said.
Despite an avalanche of advertising in the final days leading up to Tuesday’s vote, a majority of voters said they had made up their minds on the gay marriage ban ballot initiative by the end of August.
Similar divisions were evident over a state ballot measure that would prohibit abortions for minors until 48 hours after a doctor notifies a parent. Voters were mostly split over Proposition 4 regardless of race, gender or income.
As with the presidential race and the same-sex marriage ban, the clearest fault line was age. Voters ages 18 to 29 strongly opposed the parental notification measure while those 65 and over backed it heavily, according to preliminary exit polls.
While contentious social issues pitted Californians against one another at the polls, a sweeping majority of California voters said they were worried about the direction of the nation’s economy, regardless of their choice for president.
Still, concern over economic issues clearly worked to the Democrat’s advantage in the state. Six out of ten California voters named the economy the most important issue facing the country; of those, a strong majority went for Obama.
Cara Bruebaker, 33 of Rancho Cordova, an assistant manager at a Rite Aid pharmacy, voted for Obama because she thinks he would do a better job with the economy.
After losing her home in January to foreclosure because her mortgage skyrocketed, Bruebaker said, “I am one of those middle class people who isn’t going to get a good tax break” with McCain in charge.
“I feel Obama is qualified,” she said. “Being a parent is a lot like being a president. You can’t start out knowing the job. I think he’ll hit the ground running.”
Of a majority of voters who said they worried about being able to afford the health care services they needed, most chose Obama.
Californians’ feelings about the war in Iraq also tilted their votes heavily in Obama’s favor. About half of voters said they strongly disapproved of the war.
The survey of 2,309 California voters was conducted for AP by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International. Most were interviewed in a random sample of 30 precincts statewide Tuesday; 765 who voted early or absentee were interviewed by landline telephone over the last week. Results for the full sample were subject to sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, higher for subgroups.
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Methodology details: surveys.ap.org/exitpolls/
