The local artist discusses his work as an urban sketcher 

By LAILA AZHAR — features@theaggie.org

Pete Scully has been drawing for as long as he can remember. The Davis-based artist — who also serves as the management services officer of the UC Davis department of statistics — holds his pen with a slightly odd, childlike grasp.

 “I think it’s because I was holding [a pen] before they taught me how to not hold it like that,” Scully said. “Which I never learned.”

Originally from London, Scully can recall early memories of bringing his sketchbook to Primrose Hill, with the British cold freezing his fingers as he drew. But it was when he moved from London to Davis in 2005 that his passion for sketching took off. 

“It gave me a way to look at the new place where I lived,” Scully said. 

Scully specializes in urban sketching: the practice of drawing one’s surroundings. His pieces include sketches of Davis’ Arboretum, Armadillo Music and the Bike Barn, to name a few.

This form of sketching requires careful focus and attention to detail — a potentially dying art in an age of ubiquitous distractions. As social media erodes people’s attention spans, it can be rare to find someone grounded enough to take the time to soak in their surroundings enough to capture them on paper. 

“The way I look at keeping a sketchbook is that it is what keeps me able to focus on everything else,” Scully said. “I kind of think that, maybe, that’s my way of ascertaining a little bit of control over my world.” 

His art feels true to the spirit of Davis, the details so accurate and vivid they often invoke a sense of nostalgia — perhaps due to the human elements of his drawings. Rather than depicting polished, sterile versions of a location, Scully prefers to draw scenes exactly as they are. 

“I don’t make things up when I draw; I try to draw what I see,” Scully said. “I don’t leave out garbage cans — in fact, I prefer to have the garbage cans.” 

This is quite literal; while drawing the construction of Walker Hall, Scully had to stand on a bench in order to look over the fence. Faced with two garbage cans in the way, he ultimately decided to leave them in the sketch.

“You know what, that’s part of the story,” Scully said. 

Along with being an urban sketcher himself, Scully has worked to share this practice with the Davis community. In 2008, he served as one of the original correspondents for the Davis chapter of Urban Sketchers: “a global community of sketchers dedicated to the practice of on-location drawing,” according to their website. In 2010, after attending the Urban Sketching Symposium in Portland, he was inspired to create “Let’s Draw Davis,” a monthly sketch crawl that is still active today, in which participants sketch different locations in Davis. 

For him, inclusivity is a key part of the group. 

“This is something that anyone can do,” Scully said. “It’s something you can be part of if you fancy drawing.” 

He has also organized events in London, including a Jack the Ripper-themed sketch crawl in Whitechapel.

“Not glorifying Jack the Ripper,” Scully said, but rather focusing on the history of the area, and the ways in which things have changed and stayed the same. 

When moving between cities — which he often does, as he enjoys “seek[ing] out different flavors of city” — he finds himself approaching his art differently. In Davis, he’s familiar with the local scenery. In a skyscraper-filled city such as New York, he has to adjust his perspective.

Wherever he is in the world, however, Scully said that it’s often the shadows that catch his eye. He finds himself drawn to interesting shapes or patterns of light. 

“As long as I’ve got somewhere to stand,” Scully said, referencing that as the most important factor in choosing where to draw.

In line with this, he’s spent a lot of time drawing the trees of Davis.

“If you ignore the trees, you might miss all the interesting shapes they have,” Scully said. “These trees are beautiful, if you really look at the bark and the textures and the shapes.” 

He recalled that Davis lost several trees in a storm a few years back.

“I realized that some of them I’ve drawn before, and now I’ve got them on paper,” Scully said. 

One memory in particular stands out; after drawing a double-page spread of a tree, he returned the next day only to find the tree gone. 

“I’ve found myself, especially lately, drawing loads of trees, just because I’m worried — what if they fall down?” Scully said. 

By capturing specific moments in time, his work has created a record of the many changes that have taken place in Davis. 

“I like to record the changes in cities, not just the static things,” Scully said. 

It is precisely this appreciation for change that has sparked a love for drawing construction sites. Scully is quite well known for this — so much so that people on campus often give him advance notice on where they’ll be. 

Through drawing these construction sites, he’s able to record cities in their often-forgotten transitory phases. 

“I love the in-between bit, because it will never look like that again,” Scully said. “That’s a big motivator for me to get out and draw.” 

It is precisely this change that he wants viewers to keep in mind as they view his work, hoping people recall their own stories associated with the places he draws. 

When displayed in the Pence Gallery downtown, a viewer looking at Scully’s sketch of The Mustard Seed, a restaurant in Downtown Davis didn’t see The Mustard Seed at all. Instead, as he told Scully, the picture evoked memories of the friends who lived in the house in the 1960s, before it was turned into a restaurant. 

“I don’t see that. I drew it, but I don’t see that,” Scully said, noting that his perspective on a location is limited to his own memories. “Think of how [the pictures] relate to your own story and your own experiences in Davis.”

Scully’s work, from his drawings to his initiatives focused on getting others to draw, encourage a greater connection to one’s local community. His work highlights the details of Davis, making it impossible not to notice the speckled leaves of an arboretum tree or the vibrant display in a shop window. 

As he succinctly put it:“This is where you live.” 

Written by: Laila Azhar — features@theaggie.org

The gender gap’s impact in voting behavior and its causes, according to UC Davis students and staff

By GRACIELA TIU — features@theaggie.org

In the weeks leading up to the 2024 presidential election, many political figures predicted that the gender gap in voting behavior would widen significantly compared to previous election years. Defined by the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) as “the difference between the percentage of women and the percentage of men voting for a given candidate,” the gender gap quantifies the effects of variances in political beliefs and voting practices across the gender binary.

Since 1996, women have statistically preferred the democratic candidate in presidential elections, with the gap fluctuating each election year but remaining present, according to CAWP. Additionally, after 2000, men and women have overall favored different presidential candidates, with one exception in 2008. 

However, categorizing men and women into monoliths in their voting behavior would not thoroughly explain their electoral choices. Many demographic differences beyond gender such as race, socioeconomic class, age and religion can also influence a person’s vote. Still, examining the different factors contributing to the overall gender gap can point out interesting dynamics about gender and politics in contemporary American society.

Although widely predicted to increase, the gender gap in the 2024 presidential election shrank slightly from 2020, according to Associated Press Votecast data, with Vice President Kamala Harris winning a smaller percentage of women in 2024 compared to President Joe Biden in 2020. Even so, the gender gap remained at a large and observable size, similar to the past 20 years. 

Policies and campaign promises prioritized by the two presidential candidates seemed to be one reason men and women largely voted differently. Harris’ campaign often primarily focused on the importance of reproductive justice and bodily autonomy, starkly contrasting former President Donald Trump’s campaign. 

For Sydney Carlson, a fourth-year environmental policy analysis and planning major, this issue heavily influenced her choice on the ballot.

“Roe v. Wade played a role in my perspective for the election,” Carlson said. “There were so many other rights protected under Roe v. Wade which made women safer throughout the U.S. To me, the idea of voting for someone who is so publicly proud of overturning this right broke my heart.”

The Trump Campaign also zeroed in on its anti-transgender platform and subsequently its push for the upholding of traditional gender ideals, often using hateful rhetoric to push against transgender rights in many rallies and campaign ads. 

“These attacks are consistent with the gender beliefs that have fueled Trump’s support, whereby fear of gender disruption motivates a policing of sex and gender binaries that constrains conceptions of gender, promotes conformity and upholds an unequal balance of power to men over women,” a recent Forbes article reads.

With these two significant topics of reproductive justice and transgender rights, American men and women have shown their differing beliefs and priorities on a large scale. Although many other demographic factors can contribute, gender undoubtedly plays a significant role in developing these platform-based opinions.

Along with caring about platforms and policy positions, many voters — particularly women — felt concerned about Trump’s long history of disrespectful commentary toward women and the multitude of sexual misconduct allegations he has faced since the 1970s, leading some to prefer Harris instead. 

Carlson also described how she thought some of the negative rhetoric Trump used against Harris led some male voters to make their decisions accordingly.

“He referred to [Harris] in a disrespectful way, which I think caused a lot of people to follow [those] beliefs as well,” Carlson said.

Bias, whether unconscious or explicit, may have also contributed to gender-based differences in voting patterns. Both voters and candidates can exhibit forms of bias that impact their perceptions and opinions, particularly toward female candidates like Harris.

“In Western society, we have a prevailing notion of what power means that is inherently masculine,” Dr. Amber E. Boydstun, a professor and a chair of the UC Davis Department of Political Science, said. “That comes from our storybooks and our history and all of it. And so I think that any female candidate is going to have an uphill battle because we don’t have the same kind of mental model for what a powerful woman looks like in a positive way that we do for a male leader.” 

Even if a female candidate like Harris did not focus her campaign on her gender identity, voters still might display these biases and blur the lines between true political preferences and expressions of gender-based biases.

“I think even when we break down individuals to their qualities, their qualifications [and] their background, it’s still hard for some people to separate them from the traditionality of how we view men and women,” Mia Hamilton, a second-year sustainable environmental design major, said.

Another notable driver of the gender gap is the idea that social identities heavily influence party alignment.

 “Gender shapes experiences, expectations, and interests and, consequently, influences the US political system in a multitude of ways,” Heather L. Ondercin, an assistant professor in the Department of Government and Justice Studies at Appalachian State University, said in a 2017 journal article for Political Research Quarterly. “Furthermore, men’s and women’s social identities are fundamentally linked to their sex and form the basis of their partisan identification. This theory implies the gender gap’s formation is at least partially a result of men and women adjusting their partisan preferences based on the representation of their gendered social identity in the political parties.” 

This linkage of gender and partisan identity seems to make many voters resonate with the candidate or party that appeals most directly to how they want to feel represented politically.

 “I think Harris really appeals to the people in the women’s sense, like she’s backing us up on account of our rights as women,” Hamilton said. “I think a lot of the stuff that Trump votes for is very progressive in the male sense — like it kind of gives power to the men versus power to the women. Although [we] definitely see a lot of men voting for Kamala and a lot of women voting for Trump, I think it’s really easy to kind of identify them with their gender identity.” 

Similarly, many men identified with the Trump campaign’s centering around traditional masculinity.

“I think in this particular election, one of the aspects of President Trump’s candidacy that had a lot of draw for a lot of people across genders and across races was this a sense of masculinity,” Boydstun said. “Even though Harris, I think, tried very hard not to make gender the center of her campaign, I think that the kind of machismo element of Trump’s messaging meant that gender was very much at the center of this election.” 

An additional factor that may have led some men to vote for Trump could have been that the Harris Campaign’s focus on women’s rights and progress led some men to feel left behind, potentially fearing the loss of their privilege and power.

“Frustrated at not feeling understood, many then get sucked into a bro-culture of Donald Trump or Elon Musk,” John Della Volpe, the director of polling at the Harvard Institute of Politics, said in a BBC news article. “They look at who the Democrats prioritize — women, abortion rights, LGTBQ culture — and they ask ‘what about us?’”

This “bro-culture” aligns with the pushback against women’s progress that some American men have been demonstrating in the past few years.

“Donald Trump has emphasized a traditional — and even toxic -– masculinity in each of his presidential campaigns, feeding on and fueling the backlash to gender progress already evident among Americans,” Kelly Dittmar’s Forbes article reads. “In 2016, for example, more than two-thirds of Trump supporters told the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) that ‘society is becoming too soft and feminine.’ Multiple researchers found that hostile sexism, which encompasses perceptions that women’s advancement comes at a cost to men, was a significant predictor of votes for Donald Trump among men and women alike.” 

Overall opinions about gender inequality and partisan support have been proven to correlate, with 84% of Trump voters believing gender equality efforts are “going too far” and 86% of Harris supporters believing that they are “not going far enough,” according to a CBS News poll. 

The gender gap, influenced by these numerous factors, serves as a striking reminder that American attitudes and beliefs about gender permeate our daily lives — not just the presidential election.

“I think for a lot of women, it’s not that surprising,” Hamilton said. “Just because I don’t think it’s a particularly unique experience to be a woman who feels qualified for a certain role or a reward and have that blindsided by a male counterpart.”

Written by: Graciela Tiu — features@theaggie.org

Both new and experienced voters make sense of new political landscape

By EMME DUNNING — features@theaggie.org

To say that the 2024 United States presidential election has been unusual would certainly be an understatement. With a Republican candidate facing multiple felony convictions and a Democratic candidate who entered the race mere months ago, a victory for either party would be a historic event.  

The candidates for this election have been unique to say the least, and their methods of reaching potential voters has reflected this. The Kamala Harris campaign in particular has used social media trends to appeal to young voters, connecting her image with popular musical artists like Chappell Roan and Charli XCX and capitalizing on relevant TikTok trends. Voters and academics alike are taking note. 

Amber Boydstun, a professor of political science and communications at UC Davis, has significant experience analyzing the link between media and politics. In this particular election, Boydstun believes that a lack of policy information could be responsible for the increase in trend-related election content consumers have been seeing on social media. 

“We’re in a relatively low-information political environment compared to other elections,” Boydstun said. “I’ve never been alive in an election where we know so little about both candidates’ concrete policy proposals. What [social media trends] have done in this low-information environment is to give people a different heuristic to grab onto.” 

In low-information elections such as this one, Boydstun notes that many voters are drawn to candidates based on their personality and personability — particularly in terms of how these things fit in with their personal identity and values. 

“When we don’t have information about policies, then we really do go based on vibes,” Boydstun said. “We go based on whether they’re a Republican or a Democrat and what we stereotype those labels with, or whether they are a man or woman or what their race is. At the end of the day, are they someone we’d like to have a beer or a coffee with?” 

Boydstun also asserted that although social media has streamlined the process of reaching young constituents, using media to connect to potential voters is an established practice. 

“This is nothing new, right?” Boydstun said. “The entertainment space has been a place where presidential candidates have hoped to try to make a personal connection with people, and so it makes sense that social media would be the natural extension of that.”

Andrea Guillen, a fourth-year political science major, has seen this change in outreach tactics first hand. 

“Social media has definitely affected the way I see this presidential election,” Guillen said. “[In past elections], a lot of the time they would just hold press conferences, and you’d see it on live TV. Now It’s obvious that they’re trying to reach a specific audience that wouldn’t typically go out of their way to watch a presidential rally or debate.” 

Although Guillen understands the important role of social media in politics, she also is acutely aware of the unique dangers it may present. 

“Like a lot of people my age, I consume a lot of content on the internet,” Guillen said. “Social media is definitely one of the best ways to keep voters informed, but it can be tricky because misinformation is so easily spread.” 

To combat this, she recommends that potential voters continue to do research on candidates and policies outside of social media. To that end, pursuing information about individual candidates’ policies is a crucial part of participating in local and presidential elections.  

Megan Van Note, a third-year international relations major, agrees that politicians engaging in social media trends can be a great asset to reaching voters, so long as it is done sensibly. 

“I do think that trends tying together candidates or policies can make them relatable and relevant to young adults and can encourage them to vote,” Van Note said. “If done correctly, I think it can really help promote democracy.”

In order to ensure that voters make informed decisions, Van Note encourages young voters to reach beyond social media for election information and content.

“Read, listen and watch different perspectives from different sites,” Van Note said. “By only relying on news channels or social media, you are doing yourself a disservice.”

While social media has proven itself to be a powerful way of reaching young voters, experts and UC Davis students alike assert that it should be coupled with personal reflection and outside research in order to be an effective tool. 

Written by: Emme Dunning — features@theaggie.org

The recent UC Davis graduate discussed her experience since becoming a local DJ 

By LAILA AZHAR — features@theaggie.org

Yordan Scalas, better known as DJ YNOT, knows how to get a party started. The vivacious presence behind the DJ booth at an array of Davis events, her past several weekends have been a flurry of clustered dance floors. 

Scalas, a 2024 UC Davis graduate, became a DJ to solve a problem of her own. 

“I used to throw a lot of parties at my house last year, and I just felt like something was always missing,” Scalas said. 

Hoping a DJ would fill that void, she began searching for someone to enhance her parties. But when no one met her standards, she had only one option. 

“Fuck it, I’ll be the DJ,” Scalas said. 

Her father — also a DJ — began teaching her on his board and speakers this February. Less than a year later, Scalas has played recent events including UCD Fits and Yesterday Vintage Store’s Costume Kickback, Davis Snow Club’s Halloween Crawl and Theta Xi and Five Percent Studio’s Nightmare on First Street. 

Scalas has already racked up fans in Davis, including Stephanie Maravilla, a second-year political science — public service major.

“I saw DJ YNOT play at a Snow Club party,” Maravilla said. “Good music can make or break the energy of a party, so it was really cool how she set the vibes with her set.”

Ivan Lai, a fourth-year human biology major, helped plan the recent Nightmare on First Street event, and said DJ YNOT kept the crowd’s energy up throughout the night.

“She’s not just locked into one genre, which is huge for us,” Lai said. “We want our parties to keep everyone moving, and she’s exactly the kind of DJ who can deliver that. Her set feels like this perfect wave, keeping everyone hyped and engaged from start to finish.” 

Along with her training, Scalas’ DJ name also came from her father. Serendipitously, “DJ YNOT” was the first name he came up with. As soon as he said it, Scalas knew the name was the one. This DJ name has inspired its own line of merchandise, which can be seen on her Instagram page. 

“YNOT was so fire, I just had to put it on a shirt,” Scalas said. 

Her clothing line includes a tank top with the name “YNOT” in graffiti script — a piece inspired by her experience as a graffiti artist. 

In terms of creating her music, Scalas listens to music constantly and is always crafting the perfect playlist for each event. But for the most part, her process is very go-with-the-flow. 

“Honestly, I kind of just YOLO it,” Scalas said. “It’s like, this song sounds good, I’ll go from there.” 

Her friends often attend her shows, and she shared that watching them enjoy themselves is her favorite part of every set. 

“I hardly look up from my board, but whenever I do they’re always there, and I can spot them out dancing,” Scalas said.

Scalas also said that she has found similar community support in other DJs based in the Davis area. 

“I meet new DJs every day, and they teach me something new every time,” Scalas said. 

Scalas — like all of us — isn’t entirely sure about the future, but her five-year plan entails playing at clubs and festivals.

“It’s so random, but I really want to be on a reality TV show one day, so I’m hoping DJ-ing will lead me there,” Scalas said. 

It’s easy to picture her as a contestant on a reality TV show — her larger-than-life DJ personality seems that it would translate perfectly to the big screen.  

Davis has a reputation for being a particularly quiet town — a reputation that Scalas said she finds often holds true. But when DJ YNOT is at the board, the small town feels electric and filled to the brim with excitement. 

“With YNOT behind the decks, we know it’ll be an unforgettable night,” Lai said. “Why not be obsessed with DJ YNOT?” 

Written by: Laila Azhar — features@theaggie.org