Fear and loathing at Burbank polling station

At Burbank City Hall, fear over the future of healthcare, the economy and state education funding factored prominently in ballot decisions for some voters.

And as in other polling stations across the region, voters were split on the issues, candidates and frustrated.

Take 29-year-old Brandon Bennett, and Jake Johnson, 28, works in television production.

For Bennett -- whose wife is a school teacher, his father superintendent -- a “yes” vote on Proposition 30 was very important.

Gov. Jerry Brown’s tax plan, Prop.30, would raise more than $6 billion annually to patch the state’s budget deficit.

“Schools are really suffering. More money needs to go back to school district,” Bennett said.

But Johnson voted against the measure, arguing against raising taxes in a “bad economy when a lot of people are out of work.”

Schools “don’t have a revenue problem, they have a money management problem,” he added.

Both men also differed on who would be the best president.

Bennett said he had been on the fence. He voted for Obama four years ago, but this year it felt like he was voting for the lesser of two evils.

Still, he decided to vote for Obama again because of his support of gay rights.

Johnson’s vote went for Romney.

“I like the idea of having a businessman in office,” he said.

Also said his wife has a rare illness and was afraid that under Obamacare, his company would drop insurance coverage. He feared that with insurance in the public pool, his wife wouldn’t get the specialized medical care she needs.

Romney has made repealing Obama’s healthcare overhaul bill a top campaign rallying cry, although with the dynamics in the U.S. Senate not expected to change, he would have an uphill battle in Congress.

“I’m very frightened about Obamacare,” Johnson said.

Others, like first-time voter Tom Darrah, were just plain frightened.

Employed in the merchandise industry, Darrah declined to say who he voted for.

“I’ve never been so scared about the future,” he said.

ELECTION 2012:

More and more Californians voting before election day

Election will decide if Democrats get supermajority in state Senate

-- Brittany Levine and Jason Wells, Times Community News

Follow Brittany Levine on Google+ and on Twitter: @brittanylevine.