First time voters and their insight

For many, voting is considered a civic duty. A privilege that many have fought and died for, it represents the power of the people. This sentiment was not lost on first-time voters Tobias La Ponza and Robert Simmons.

The 2020 presidential election was the first election cycle La Ponza and Simmons were able to vote in.

Simmons, a political science major at Fresno State, was only 15 when Donald Trump was elected as president in 2016. However, he remembers his sentiments vividly. “As a young person in 2016, I hated sitting back watching the election happen without me being able to participate in it,” said Simmons.

“You can vote for your congressman, and for lots of propositions. And a lot of those propositions even if they don’t affect you directly, they affect your community, which ultimately affects where you’re living and the quality of your life as well as other people in your community that you may know and care about, ” said La Ponza.

With many polling places spread throughout the city of Fresno, voting was made easy, even if you don’t have a car. La Ponza voted at the Save Mart Center a mile walk from his residence. It took him less than 5 minutes. Ballots could also be mailed or put into drop boxes around the city.

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