For Virginians over 18 years of age, March 6 marked the beginning of their direct involvement in the 2012 Presidential Election. Any registered voter had from 6:00 a.m to 7:00 p.m. to cast their ballot for the Republican presidential nominee. Many students and teachers at AHS took part in this primary, in which Mitt Romney won.

The only two candidates on the ballot were Republicans Ron Paul and Romney. All other candidates did not meet the required number of signatures to be placed on the ballot. Virginia is one of the 23 states with March primaries and one of the only 18 states in the nation whose primaries are open to any registered voter, regardless of party-affiliation. Not everyone likes this system.

“I’m not a fan of the open primaries system,” IB Topics and US government teacher Mary Ann Richardson said.

In this system, Democrats and other non-Republicans can vote for their favorite Republican candidate. Although an open system can increase the primary voter-turnout and effectively reflect the opinion of the mass population, it often does not reflect the opinion of the political party in question.

“I believe people should join a party,” Richardson said, who is a Democrat and chose not to vote. “If people want to be Independent and choose not to pick a party, they shouldn’t vote.”

Senior Susie Sowa, a Republican who voted before school started for the day, picked Romney. “I like him a lot more than I like Ron Paul,” she said. “I think he stands out because he’s a genuinely good guy.”

Sowa, like Richardson, does not “see the point in having an open primary.” According to Richardson, open primaries tend to be more “mischievous” than closed caucuses.

“In 2008, a lot of Republicans voted for Obama [in the Democratic primaries] because they didn’t want Hilary Clinton to win,” Richardson said. “They make sure the weakest candidate gets elected.”