Drexel students pick debate winner

Independent polling web site gets student responses

By: William Mulgrew

Posted: 10/31/07

Hundreds of Drexel students selected Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., as the debate winner Oct. 31, through the new campus-specific polling web site, www.open-vote.com.

With 383 votes cast as of 1:04 a.m., Obama garnered 47 percent of student support. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., finished second with 18 percent, Sens. John Edwards, D-N.C., and Joe Biden, D-Del., won 12 percent and the remaining candidates won 6 percent and less.

Obama gained three points over a pre-debate poll where 375 students expressed their preference if the Democratic primary election was held that day. At 2 p.m. Oct. 30, 44 percent of students supported Obama, 24 percent supported Clinton, 15 percent supported Edwards, with the remaining candidates drawing less than five percent.

"We don't claim that the results are scientific or representative of the school, but we think it's a good way to gauge student views," said OpenVote co-founder Colin Van Ostern.

Van Ostern said he did not think Clinton's six percent drop was due to a bad performance, but rather because other candidates simply did better.

"Students deserve to have their voice heard, but traditional polling relies on home phones and leaves college students out entirely," Van Ostern said. "It is amazing that with all the new technology and increased internet access in recent years, up until now there still has been no good way to see what a college campus thinks. OpenVote is changing that."

Currently, with over 600 votes cast, Obama has sustained the lead with 46 percent.

In the Republican primary poll, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani leads with 20 percent of the vote. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, garnered a close second with 19 percent. 45 percent of students indicated that they would not vote for any Republican candidate.

Mike Ruggieri, a pre-junior majoring in mechanical engineering, cast his vote for Obama.

"Right now, I think he has the best personality, but this early [the candidates] haven't said enough," Ruggieri said.

Vanessa Iyua, a senior majoring in psychology, said, "I'm a registered Democrat, but I'm in the middle of the road for everything."

She declined to vote in the pre-debate poll until she could learn more on the candidates' stances on the environment.

Freshman mechanical engineering major Ed McKee voted in the Republican primary poll for Paul.

"I think he's the only true conservative running. I think what our country needs is fiscal restraint and a return to the founding principles that made this country great."

Karin Bohr, a sophomore nursing major, said she strongly supports Clinton.

"I liked Bill Clinton when he was in office and I feel she would be a great asset for our country," she said.

Nithin Michael, an international student majoring in electrical engineering, volunteered for the debate, but said he refrained from support of one candidate.

"I'm still trying to understand the culture of this country," Michael said. "I've immersed myself in it as much as possible. I hope to live here when I graduate. I find the American political system so fascinating."

Michael described his ideology as center-right.

"I think you guys have a difficult choice this time around," he said.

The previous Democratic presidential debate was held at Dartmouth College, where Clinton was the OpenVote poll winner.

OpenVote was created by Dartmouth graduate students Jason Freedman and Colin Van Ostern as a way for students to poll their school on any issue. The OpenVote web site an independent venture that is not connected with a political party or Drexel University.