Two single women voters give Bush debate edge

By Erik Lacitis
Seattle Times staff reporter

Libby Liming

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What do single women want in this presidential election?

Libby Liming and Melissa Smart are both 25, live in Bellevue and are unmarried. They remained undecided on that question before last night's presidential debate began. Part of a bloc of younger women voters some believe could determine the outcome of the election if they took to the polls in greater numbers, the two watched the debate with us.

"Single women can swing an election," said Ruth Mandel, senior scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Page Gardner, of McLean, Va., founder of Women's Voices. Women Vote, a group trying to get that gender to vote, said that in 2000, there were 22 million unmarried women, 18 or older, who did not vote.

While they may be a little cynical about politics, Gardner said, "they do have a clear agenda. These women are interested in economic security, health care security and retirement security."

Said Nancy Eitreim, president of the League of Women Voters of Seattle: "Single women don't feel they have a stake. Few subscribe to newspapers. Their source of information is music radio, which has very little news." If only they'd vote.

Here are two who intend to do so. What follows are their assessments at three intervals during last night's debate and their conclusions when the debate was over.

6:30 p.m.

Libby Liming City: Bellevue Age: 25 Occupation: Receptionist Marital status: Single mother with one son, 4 1/2 Education: 1997 graduate of Interlake High School in Bellevue; attended Washington State University and Bellevue Community College. How declared in primary: Democrat, so she could vote for Christine Gregoire for governor. Who voted for in 2000 presidential election: Can't recall for certain if she voted, "but if I did, it was probably for Bush." Why undecided: "I haven't heard a whole lot from anybody about where they stand on the issues. All I'm hearing is mudslinging." Key issues: Health care, taxes and education. "I can't afford a private school. I want to make sure my son gets the best public education."

"Kerry seems a little high on himself. Kerry is shaking his head (when there's a cutaway while Bush is speaking), writing something down. It bugs me. He also keeps looking at somebody in the audience. He's not connecting with me. He's not telling us how to he's going to go from 'O' to 'X.' Bush does make a kind of scrunch on his face when he doesn't agree with Kerry. But he seems more personable."

7 p.m.

"Bush is not bringing in people to make himself look better, like generals (Kerry said that ). When Bush talked about the wife of a soldier killed — it's hard to explain — but he didn't exploit her. Kerry looks like he's got a rod up his spine. Bush seems like he's stating the facts, and Kerry seems like he's attacking the president. Bush is connecting a lot better."

7:30 p.m.

"Bush did look like he was caught off guard on that nuclear-proliferation question. He seemed to wobble a little bit. Kerry made less faces, Bush made more. For the most part, Kerry seemed really impersonal. Kerry bores me. They say Bush is for the big-money guys. But he seemed like he was talking to us."

(After watching the families come on stage, Libby had these comments.)

"I like Laura a lot more. She's so cute she'd invite you in and cook you apple pie."

Who won?

Libby Liming said that Bush won the debate, coming across as more firm and a better leader. She liked the couple of jokes he made, such as saying about his daughters, "I'll have to put them on a leash."

Before the debate, she had been swaying toward Kerry. "Now I'm back in the middle again."

6:30 p.m.

Melissa Smart City: Bellevue Age: 25 Occupation: Surgery scheduler at a medical facility in Issaquah. Marital status: Single, no children. Education: 1997 graduate of Bellevue Christian School and graduate of Bellevue Community College. Also attended Washington State University and a dental-hygienist school. How declared in primary: Didn't vote because "I didn't like being forced to pick a party." Who voted for in 2000 presidential election: George Bush Why undecided: "I don't own a house, I don't pay property taxes, I don't have a husband or boyfriend in the war. A lot of things they are pushing for don't affect me." Key issues: "Health care. I was in a horse accident and unemployed. I didn't have insurance."

"Kerry is not following through. He's flip-flopping. He says he wants to make things better, but he can't tell us how or how to get us out. He's not giving solutions. Bush is giving solution. He says, 'This is what I've done, this is what I plan to do.' Kerry doesn't seem like he's got it together. Answer the damn questions! He says I know these people, talked to these people. Yeah? Pin a rose on your nose. I want to know how he feels."

7 p.m.

"I like how Bush responds directly to Kerry. I had so many friends saying that Bush sucks at debating. At my office, there are no girls who'll admit they're voting for Bush. When Kerry mentioned johnkerry.com, it sounded he was plugging himself instead of debating. I don't know much diplomacy or what's going on with Korea. I can't say who's giving the right answer."

7:30 p.m.

"Bush just seems more confident. We went into this Iraq war wanting redemption for the lives lost in 9/11, showing we're a strong force and we cannot be defeated. I think towards the end, it became more of a debate, with both taking stances as far as nuclear proliferation. Kerry didn't flip-flop."

(Then, after watching the families of the candidates come on stage, she had these comments.)

"I really don't like Teresa (Heinz Kerry). She comes across like she wears the pants in the family. Dr. Phil was interviewing the Bushes, and they talked about how they discipline their children, and you got a feeling they were real people. Laura and the president sat very close and were laughing. They had a blurb about Dr. Phil interviewing the Kerrys, and they were sitting far apart."

Who won?

She said that Bush won the debate. As far as the Iraq war, she was a Bush supporter, "but as far as abortion, supporting teachers and taxes, that's where I'm on the fence."

Was she swayed by the debate? "If I had to vote today, I'd say Bush."

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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