Through noon Tuesday, there were nearly 400 voters through the Meridian Senior Center — Precinct 15 in Okemos. Photo byKarrun Farmaha.
Tuesday signaled the end of the midterm election season — and the end of the deluge of political ads on television, in residents’ mailboxes and even via text message.
“They get kind of irrational and obnoxious at times,” said Mini Mahanti, who voted at the Meridian Center Center Meridian Township (Precinct 15) early Tuesday. ”I don’t pay attention to them too much, but I kind of get the gist of them but the obnoxious ones I turn off.”
“I think they got to a point where it’s not about the message, it’s not about caring it’s about demeaning the other candidate,” said Emmanuel Ijere of Okemos. “They should be more positive and factual, for the most part I dismiss them. If they were factual they would influence me, I want to hear about what the candidates are all about, who they are and what they are trying to do, and not just what the other person hasn’t done right.”
Said Okemos’ Okay Maguwa: “The advertisements are very good for us but sometimes they emphasize what is unnecessary. I listen to what they have to say. It was getting to be to much especially in the past few days.”
“The ads are pretty repetitive, sometimes I pay attention, they are annoying,” said Melissa Loveridge, who was voting at the Senior Center. “The ads are biased and aren’t always useful, so it’s a little nice for them to be over.”
According to an analysis of ad-spending by NBC News, nearly $3 billion has been spent on TV and radio advertisements in the House, Senate and gubernatorial races.
“I think they are a waste of time, I’d rather read something in the newspaper, they’re not really influential,” said Cathy Blatnik, who was also voting at the Senior Center. “They’d be useful if they were positive and fact based.”
“I believe you don’t get a lot of information from them due to their inaccuracy or sliding one way or the other,” said Doug Warren of Okemos. “I’d rather find out the information on my own through more objective nonpartisan avenues. I believe you don’t get a lot of information from them due to their inaccuracy or sliding one way or the other.”
Warren isn’t the only one who started to tune out the ads.
Rachel Minkin, who was voting at Meridian Township’s Precinct 15 on Tuesday morning, said: “I tried to ignore as many of them as I could and switch channels to not see them. I’m always amazed they can run them back to back and have one positive and one showing how awful that person is. They cancel each other out and I go with my own research at the end of the day.”