Young Texans ready to vote, 'be a part of change'

DEBATE WATCH | Those still undecided keep close eye on candidates

AUSTIN, Texas -- If you want to judge public reaction on anything from sports to politics, go to a barbershop or a bar.

So while journalists from across the country, political supporters and everyday people were focused on the Democratic presidential debate at the Recreational Sports Center at the University of Texas at Austin, I went to a debate party thrown by Barack Obama supporters at Austin's famous Scholz Garten.

The watering hole is a short distance from the Texas Capitol and the university, and it's not unusual for political debates to break out across tables laden with pitchers of beer and plates of burgers and fries. Thursday night was no different. About 200 Obama supporters and several undecided voters gathered to watch the debate between Senators Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) on jumbo screen TVs.

Cynthia Colpaart, who described herself as a child of the '60s and someone who dances to a different drummer, thinks Obama is the best thing that could happen to this country, but she is still interested in hearing the two candidates tangle.

"At the very beginning, I thought, yada, yada, yada," Colpaart said. "I really don't think anybody was paying attention, but people are starting to really position themselves. If somebody came up to me last month and asked me if I had made a decision, I would have said undecided."

Colpaart acknowledges that Clinton may have an edge in the debate arena since she has been in that arena a long time. Still, the former first lady's message may be lost on people like Colpaart because she feels she has heard those arguments before.

"It's like when you were young, stayed out late, and your mother said the same thing she has always said. You just stop listening," Colpaart said.

One table over, 24-year-old Alejandro Juarez sat with a group that included people his age, as well as those who have been debating politics for decades. Juarez, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Obama, still hasn't made up his mind about who will get his vote.

"I used to be very informed, but when [President] Bush got elected, I felt helpless," said Juarez, who is an admissions counselor at the University of Texas at Austin.

"I fell into a state of apathy. [And] I have been so uninformed over the past couple of years."

But Juarez, a Mexican American born in the United States, is fully aware of the critical role Latino and young voters will play in the March 4 primary election. He was in Scholz to catch up.

"I feel this is the first time that has happened, and we can be a part of change," he said. "They talk about the involvement of the young population and how much of a difference they can make. I want to be a part of that."