FRESNO, Calif. – As voters throughout the Valley cast their ballots in California’s Primary Election today, many pointed to homelessness, affordability and other social issues as being top of mind. Others expressed a desire for wider acceptance of diverse viewpoints, and for candidates who represent a broader political spectrum.
For Georgie Dayton, election priorities were water access and border control.
“When you love your country or care about it, you just don't walk out and leave the door wide open,” said the 92-year-old Republican, who voted in Fresno.
Other voters told KVPR that immigration concerns and rising costs of gas were drawing them to the polls.
“This will determine the future for California in terms of how well we do with the current administration right now,” said Julio Barrio, a 26-year-old Democrat from Firebaugh.
In the Fresno County town of Huron, voters said they’re concerned about recent changes to healthcare.
One of them was Margie Macias, a nurse who said many of her patients worry about holding on to their health insurance amid cuts to Medicaid and other safety net programs led by the Trump administration.
“A lot of them could lose everything they get,” said the 70-year-old Democrat.
Kimberly Arredondo, a 19-year-old student, said she was recently cut from her government-funded health insurance and is trying to re-enroll.
“I feel like healthcare, nowadays, is kind of hard to come by to a lot of people, and it's very expensive if you don't have enough resources,” she said.
The top two vote-getters for governor and most other races will be decided as ballots are tallied tonight and over the next week.
Tens of thousands of votes were already cast by mail and via ballot drop boxes sprinkled throughout the Valley.
As of Monday, nearly 80,000 ballots had already been cast in Fresno County.
“That's pretty good. That's actually ahead of recent primaries for Fresno County,” said James Kus, Fresno County’s Registrar of Voters.
As for why, he’s not sure – especially with 61 candidates for governor on the ballot.
“When there are so many candidates…it's going to cause some confusion. It's going to turn off some voters,” he said.
Early votes were up in Merced County, too. But the early vote tally was about average in Kern and Madera counties, and below average in Mariposa and Tulare Counties.
Even though every Californian is mailed a ballot ahead of each election, many make a tradition of showing up at polling places – like Steven Northrup, a Republican in Fresno. As a Vietnam veteran, he said he knows that many never made it back home to vote.
“I think it's an honor to vote in person,” he said. “It’s a privilege.”
