Texas Sen. Ted Cruz won about 15 percent of the vote in Champaign County. Marco Rubio, who dropped out of the presidential race after losing Florida Tuesday, earned less than 2 percent of votes cast.
Democrats in Champaign County chose Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders about 52 percent to 46 percent. She also easily won Clark County about 59 percent compared to about 40 percent for Sanders.
Outside polling locations across Clark County Tuesday, voters cast their ballots for a range of candidates across the board for both parties.
Ed Dungan, of Springfield, said he cast his ballot in the Republican primary for Kasich because be believed he served the state well. But he said it’s not clear how the presidential race will play out if there is a contested convention later this summer. He also liked Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, but said he preferred Kasich.
“I voted for him twice for governor,” Dungan said of Kasich. “Cruz was maybe a second choice but we’ll have to see how it plays out.”
Cruz was the first choice for Mary Colvin, of Springfield. She said she liked Cruz’s reputation with Evangelical voters and his defense of the U.S. Constitution.
“I think he cares,” Colvin said of Cruz. “I don’t think he’ll go haywire.”
Chris Lough, of Springfield, said he voted for Donald Trump, noting he liked that Trump is not a career politician. Lough said he was concerned about illegal immigration, and believes Trump is the most likely candidate to improve security along the U.S. border with Mexico.
“Our economy doesn’t have enough money as it is,” Lough said.
For the Democrats, Sandra Nicewaner, of Springfield, liked Bernie Sanders and his message that money plays too great a role in politics.
“I just liked his overall statements,” Nicewaner said. “He seemed more calm and sure of himself as far as what he is going to do.”
But Toni Johnson preferred Hillary Clinton, citing her years of experience in government both in the U.S. Senate and and later as Secretary of State.
“I remember when she was First Lady to President Bill Clinton and then Secretary of State under President Obama,” Johnson said. “She’s been in the public eye for quite a while and I’ve had a chance to get to know her and her policies”
None of the Republican candidates appealed to Scott King, of Springfield, who also voted for Sanders Tuesday.
But he said he had concerns about Clinton and her use of a private email server while she served as U.S. Secretary of State. Clinton has faced questions from Republicans about whether classified documents may have been mishandled.
“A lot of it comes down to trust again,” King said. “There are a lot of questions surrounding the whole email server thing. (Sanders) can be a little extreme maybe, but he’s always been consistent.”
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