Voter voices: Monique Anthony, Ladera Heights

At Magic Johnson’s Starbucks in Ladera Heights this afternoon, chiropractor Monique Anthony, 41, was debating whether to go vote.

“At first, I thought about not voting today,” Anthony said. “I think people are so stressed and overwhelmed, just from the previous elections.... They want us to vote for something that we haven’t studied enough. I don’t think there was enough information about each of these core issues.”

What a difference an election can make. In November, for the historic election of President Obama, voters  lined up to cast their ballots long before their precincts even opened. By noon today at one precinct in Inglewood, poll supervisor Gerry Richardson said that only 51 of the 2,300 registered voters -- about 2% -- had turned out.

Even though the number was low, Richardson said she was surprised: “My thought was that we weren’t going to have 50 people come in.”

Robert Spearman, who is in the insurance business, was one of the few voters at Richardson’s polling station. He said that voting was his obligation and that it was important to set an example for his children .

“The reason I came out to vote is because I’ve been given this right and I want to make sure I exercise my right,” Spearman said.

-- Carla Rivera