Even in his old neighborhood, Mr. Romney had his detractors, and enthusiasm among his supporters seemed generally low.Some were angry that Mr. Romney did not support the federal auto bailout in 2008. Others did not like the negative tone the candidates adopted. But many said they were forced to choose between a candidate they thought could beat President Obama in November and one who shares their personal values.
Wearing a tie printed with the American flag, Sandy Munro, 62, said he cast his vote for Mr. Santorum because he was “probably the little more moral of the two.”
“Romney was the right guy the last time around to get the country back on its feet,” he said about the 2008 election. “Now what we need is a strong political leader to do something to get us out of the moral slump that we’re in.”
In Novi, a nearby suburb, Jim Graves, 49, decided on Tuesday morning that he would vote for Mr. Romney, whom he called the “least of all the evils.”
Since losing his job at an auto supplier in 2006, Mr. Graves said, he has been able to find only part-time work. He said Mr. Romney’s business experience was impressive, though he did not seem excited about his vote.
“I’m comfortable with it,” he said about his choice. “I’ve made my peace with it.”
Pat Tschirhart, 77, said that he sided with Mr. Santorum on many social issues — especially his opposition to abortion — but that in the end chose to back Mr. Romney because he was the best “anybody but Obama” candidate.
On the western side of the state, at the Rainbow Grill in Grandville, Mich., near Grand Rapids, voters packed in to see Mr. Santorum, enthused by his stance on social issues.
Barb Northuis, 54, works in day care and voted for Mr. Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, because “he’s pro-life and has Christian values,” she said.
Her friend Sandy DeGroot, a 60-year-old banker, agreed. “We need to get back to a president with faith.” As for Mr. Romney? “No way,” she said.
Many voters, however, were still undecided, even after casting their ballots.
Jean Dalman, 84, is a church volunteer who voted for Mr. Romney on Friday by absentee ballot, but now regrets it. “I was betwixt and between,” she said. “You don’t know what the truth is. Truth has gone out the window.”
The electorate’s lack of enthusiasm has popped up again and again throughout the Republican contest, with front-runners rising and falling over the last few months.
It was noticeable again in Novi on Tuesday, where volunteers working at the polls at Holy Family Catholic Church said turnout was surprisingly light, even for a primary. A voter or two, then more waiting.
Around midday, the machine counting ballots sat silent in the empty gymnasium.
“Most of the people I know aren’t even going to take the time to vote,” said Jon Spendlove, 31, who came to the church on his day off to back Representative Ron Paul of Texas.
Campaign ads that flooded the airwaves might have added to voter fatigue, said Susan Abrams, 46, who decided on Monday night to support Mr. Romney and looks forward to things getting back to normal.
“I’m so sick of hearing about it,” she said. “I didn’t even turn on the news this morning because I knew it’s all I would hear.”
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 29 February 2012 02:41 (fourteen years ago)