NATCHEZ &045; Some area residents say that they are going to the polls Tuesday for reasons that vary from concerns over particular issues, adherence to civic virtue or simply as a protest against the status quo.

&uot;Voting is my civic duty,&uot; said Copiah-Lincoln Community College student Janet Passman.

She didn’t agree with the president’s decision to go to war with Iraq, but supports him anyway.

&uot;I really think that the war was uncalled for, but now that it is going on, I think that Bush will do a better job fighting it than John Kerry,&uot; she said.

Attorney Chris Kelley also looks at voting as a citizen’s obligation and believes that the best way to participate is to stay informed.

&uot;It is a civic duty and you should educate yourself about the issues and find out what the candidates really stand for,&uot; he said.

Kelley said leadership, character and background will be the decisive attributes for the candidate in

the election. &uot;Leadership is the most important thing to think about.

You also have to consider past experience and credibility,&uot; he said.

Obstetrician Tom Carey sees tort reform as an important issue.

&uot;I think it’s a big problem right now,&uot; he said. &uot;The cost of insurance is still driving many doctors out of Mississippi.&uot;

He in concerned about Kerry’s running mate, John Edwards’ history as a trial attorney who made much of his fortune in legislation against the medical community.

&uot;Bush is the only one that I hear talking about tort reform,&uot; he said. &uot;Edwards is a lawyer and brought the kind of suits that are making it hard for people to get insured.&uot;

Stephen Forman, English instructor at Alcorn State University, wants to use his vote to express his displeasure over the war in Iraq.

&uot;We need a new direction,&uot; he said. &uot;We need to get this Iraq situation straightened out and increase our standing in the global community.&uot;

Forman believes the current administration went to war with little consideration for the aftermath of regime change.

&uot;I don’t think that there was an adequate plan to stabilize the country. My jaw dropped when I heard we were going to war with Iraq; it’s a great distraction from Afghanistan,&uot; he said.

Bartender Tara Montgomery said she is concerned for the state of the economy and is voting for John Kerry because she prefers any leader to George Bush.

&uot;Clinton was better than Bush, at least back then we had money,&uot; she said. &uot;Anyone is better than Bush.&uot;

Charles Gould, a carpenter, said he won’t be voting for the president, but John Kerry won’t be getting his vote either.

&uot;I plan to vote for Ralph Nader as sort of a protest vote,&uot; Gould said. &uot;I disagree with all the mudslinging that has gone on during the campaign. I don’t really like Kerry’s history in Vietnam, and I don’t like Bush giving the rich tax cuts.&uot;

Gould also said it is important someone should support the third party candidate and thinks that voting in Mississippi, not considered a swing state in the election, makes it easier to do so.

Edie Christian, owner of the Riverboat Gift Shop, thinks a candidate’s personal faith is important in considering who will get her vote.

&uot;They have to have moral values and you have to know what they believe in,&uot; she said.

Christian said she sees taxes as a crucial issue for small business owners, like she, and was concerned about the rising price of gasoline effecting tourism in Natchez.

Christian still believes, however, that the war is the defining issue of this election and felt that people should vote to send a message to our troops.

&uot;I think we need to vote to support them and let them know we care,&uot; she said.