Max Sinton, 11, a sixth-grader at Longfellow Junior High School attentively fills out his ballot in the school courtyard. In a mock presidential election at Longfellow Junior High on Monday, John Kerry won by a landslide with 245 votes. President George Bush came away with only 8 votes, and 22 ballots were thrown out. Of the 433 students at the school, 297 registered to vote, a requirement in order to participate. At right, a voter enjoys a post-decision lollipop while showing off his “I Voted” souvenir sticker. -more-

Over the protests of neighboring business and property owners, Zoning Adjustments Board members Thursday issued a mitigated negative declaration and a use permit for a major University Avenue project. -more-

If John Kerry emerges triumphant Tuesday, he will have thousands of volunteers to thank, including quite a few from Berkeley. -more-

Richmond city officials abused their discretion three years ago in approving a plan by ChevronTexaco to create two 30,000-barrel liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanks, a state appellate court ruled Friday. -more-

With the supply scarce, Berkeley health officials are struggling to decide how to dole out potentially life-saving flu vaccines this winter—a challenge made more complicated by the fact that most of the doses are in private hands. -more-

That uncanny silence you hear all over Berkeley is the sound of more than a hundred thousand people simultaneously holding their breath until the election is over. This paper will be on the stand for three days, and it’s a pretty fair bet that most Berkeleyans won’t be able to exhale until the next issue comes out, if then. The good thing about this election is that it’s got people talking to one another who have managed to disagree about a lot of the important issues for the last 30 years, give or take a few. Whoever wins the presidency, there’s sure to be a post-election honeymoon during which born-again Democrats will continue to talk to one another about what’s best for the country—it’s just that different tactical responses will be required depending on who wins the presidency. Not even very different, really, because the Republicans are likely to retain control of Congress in any event. -more-