The student voices at the University of Massachusetts have been heard. On Super Tuesday students voted, and Senator Barack Obama seemed to be the preference across campus.

Obama and Ron Paul were the only two candidates represented yesterday in the campus center concourse. Obama, however, was also represented in numerous signs and bumper stickers posted around campus.

UMass sophomore Shannon Fitzpatrick said she voted for Obama because she cares about “restoring the face of America.”

She not only agrees with Obama’s policies on most issues, but also thinks he would make the most intelligent decisions.

“He doesn’t have as much experience, but [he has] the smarts to know who to hire and they can bring the experience,” she said.

Neil Desai, also a sophomore, believes Obama will win the majority of the UMass student vote.

“He is a democrat and Massachusetts is mostly a democratic state,” said Desai. “From what I hear, a lot of people don’t like Hillary Clinton, but I’m not sure why.”

Numerous students on campus seem to like Obama because they say he stands for a generation of younger voters.

“He will represent the youngest face available; I think he’ll make the most drastic change,” said Eliot Gill, sophomore Obama supporter.

Freshman Matt Grazewski voted for Obama via absentee ballot. Grazewski believes Obama is the clear choice for the majority of UMass students because “he appeals to a younger crowd.”

Similarly, sophomore Amy Koenig voted for Obama and believes the majority of UMass students voted for him because “it seems like he was strongly backed by the youth.”

Massachusetts residents, notoriously known for their liberal views, make up over 75 percent of the UMass student population and may be the cause for such enthusiastic support of Obama on campus.

For some students, mainly democratic or liberal views can come with an anti-republican sentiment.

Freshman Jeff McPherson said, “It scares me – [the idea] of having another republican in office.”

If Obama wins the democratic primary, he can expect many UMass students to be behind him.

“Obama has a lot of student support, and Lord knows we’re not republicans,” said Gill.

Eden Univer can be reached at [email protected] and Cara Grannemann at [email protected].