Absentee voters

As the Super Tuesday election results pour in tonight, many Northwestern students will be watching to see how their home states measure up. Though students were excited for the chance to participate in the political process, some said that sending in their absentee ballot couldn't compare to the voting booth experience.
Ben Bear, a Communications sophomore, was afraid his absentee vote in the Massachusetts primary might get lost in the mail.

"You definitely feel like you're having a bigger impact if you go right to the booth, but I still feel like I have an active role," Bear said.

Music junior Laura Weiner said her absentee vote in the Colorado primary would be more important than a vote in Illinois, since Colorado is more evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats. Weiner said the absentee voting process was simple, though she almost forgot to get a ballot. She thinks it's important to vote, though voting absentee has its downside.

"You aren't with other people who are all voting," Weiner said. "And there's the delay. My vote won't get counted for another couple days."

For Weinberg sophomore Katie Mallon, voting absentee was all about convenience. Though Mallon is from Chicago, she chose to send in an absentee ballot two weeks ago.

"I wanted to vote absentee because I wanted to vote for Chicago officials, and I couldn't get home," Mallon said.

—CHRISTINA SALTER