VOA常速英语2008年-Pennsylvania Begins Ballot Count in Crucial Pri

By Paula Wolfson
Pittsburgh
22 April 2008

The ballot¹ count is underway in a crucial primary election in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Voters chose between two candidates for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination²: Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. VOA's Paula Wolfson visited polling places in the Pittsburgh area and surveyed the views of the electorate³.

Most agree they have never quite seen anything like it.

Pennsylvania traditionally holds its primary late, and for years it has been an afterthought in the selection process.

But election officials say this year is different. Two candidates are still battling hard for the Democratic nomination, voter registration⁴ is way up, and a high turnout is expected.

At a polling place in the Pittsburgh suburbs, a neighborhood election official named Al surveys the Election Day scene and smiles. "I haven't seen this much excitement since I started voting in 1960 for Jack⁵ Kennedy," the official said.

Turnout has been steady across the state, with a big jump in participation⁶ in the late hours before the polls close.

The mood is serious, with voters well aware that this year their ballots⁷ really count.

Elizabeth, a high school English teacher, says she voted for Barack Obama. "A lot of people talk about how eloquently⁸ he speaks. A lot of people say he doesn't have substance. But every time I have listened to him speak, I hear a lot of substantive⁹ issues being discussed in an intelligent and familiar way," she said.

 

Republicans are also holding a separate party primary in Pennsylvania. They already have a presumptive presidential nominee¹⁰ in John McCain. But Greg, a party member, says he took his Republican ballot and wrote in Senator Obama's name, even though his vote will not count in the Democrats-only tally¹¹. "I just wanted my voice to be heard. That was who I wanted to represent today. So that is why I wanted to make sure I came here," he said.

 

Younger voters, like Elizabeth and Greg, form the core of Barack Obama's support in Pennsylvania. They embrace his message of change. But senior citizens appear more interested in experience and stability. And all indications are, they are backing Hillary Clinton.

After casting her ballot, an elderly woman named Joan leans slightly on a cane¹² and explains her vote for Senator Clinton. "She is articulate in getting her point across and her points, I like," she said.

She says she is voting not just on the basis of issues that concern senior citizens, but those that will affect her children and grandchildren as well.

As she emerges from the polls, a young mother is also focusing on the future, as she holds onto the hand of her young daughter. Dawn says she was unsure about her vote until the last minute. She says she listened to her gut¹³ feelings and the advice of her seven-year-old child. "I voted for Barack and then when I went to cast my ballot I went back and voted for Hillary," she said.

Her daughter, Flynn, squints¹⁴ in the springtime sun, and volunteers her own take on the campaign. "I thought that when I was watching Hillary in the debate, I thought that Hillary was really going to win."

Voters in Pennsylvania know in the end their choice will be historic, and for the first time a major political party will nominate either a woman or an African-American for the presidency¹⁵. Dawn says she wants her daughter to experience it all and know that anything is possible, noting Flynn has already decided¹⁶ that some day she might just want to be the president of the United States.

1 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

2 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

3 electorate   

n.全体选民；选区

参考例句：

• The government was responsible to the electorate.政府对全体选民负责。
• He has the backing of almost a quarter of the electorate.他得到了几乎1/4选民的支持。

4 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

5 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

6 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

7 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 eloquently   

adv. 雄辩地(有口才地, 富于表情地)

参考例句：

• I was toasted by him most eloquently at the dinner. 进餐时他口若悬河地向我祝酒。
• The poet eloquently expresses the sense of lost innocence. 诗人动人地表达了失去天真的感觉。

9 substantive   

adj.表示实在的；本质的、实质性的；独立的；n.实词，实名词；独立存在的实体

参考例句：

• They plan to meet again in Rome very soon to begin substantive negotiations.他们计划不久在罗马再次会晤以开始实质性的谈判。
• A president needs substantive advice,but he also requires emotional succor. 一个总统需要实质性的建议，但也需要感情上的支持。

10 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

11 tally   

n.计数器，记分，一致，测量；vt.计算，记录，使一致；vi.计算，记分，一致

参考例句：

• Don't forget to keep a careful tally of what you spend.别忘了仔细记下你的开支账目。
• The facts mentioned in the report tally to every detail.报告中所提到的事实都丝毫不差。

12 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

13 gut   

n.[pl.]胆量；内脏；adj.本能的；vt.取出内脏

参考例句：

• It is not always necessary to gut the fish prior to freezing.冷冻鱼之前并不总是需要先把内脏掏空。
• My immediate gut feeling was to refuse.我本能的直接反应是拒绝。

14 squints   

斜视症( squint的名词复数 )； 瞥

参考例句：

• The new cashier squints, has a crooked nose and very large ears. 新来的出纳斜眼、鹰钩鼻子，还有两只大耳朵。
• They both have squints. 他俩都是斜视。

15 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。