Reply #5: Central Texas voters tuned in to presidential race

[sonias]

AAS article 2/2/08
Central Texas voters tuned in to presidential race, and they like a lot of what they see
Real choices, fresh candidates drive excitment about primaries, some voters say
By W. Gardner Selby , Corrie MacLaggan

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Saturday, February 02, 2008

The Texas presidential primaries are more than a month away, but Austin-area voters already appear tuned in and excited by the candidates — some for the first time in ages.

Voters interviewed about their inclinations as the March 4 primaries approach viewed this presidential election as special. It's a wide-open race, the first time since 1952 that a sitting president or vice president isn't a serious contender for the Republican or Democratic nomination. It's the first time a woman or a black man has had a clear shot at the Democratic nomination. And if mixed results persist through balloting in 22 states on Tuesday, Texas voters could play a rare decisive role in choosing the nominees.

"This is the first election I can remember since Kennedy ran against Nixon where there is real excitement, where you feel there are real choices," said Virginia Rogers, 65, an Austin businesswoman who said she last voted for a major-party nominee when she supported Jimmy Carter.

Austinite Morris Woods, 65, a business consultant, initially supported former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, who dropped out of the race last month. Now he plans to vote for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. "It was hard to choose," Woods said. "There are a lot of good candidates on our side of the ticket, and I think the Democrats feel the same way. It's a feast-or-famine situation, and both sides have a feast."

Feast on republicans McCain, Romney, Huckabee and Paul? Sounds like a whole lot of food poisoning to me.

Sonia