If New York is the ultimate international city, then 24-year-old NYU journalism grad student and Barack Obama supporter Merritt Gurley is perhaps the is perhaps the ultimate New Yorker. With a political outlook shaped by a life lived all over the world, this young voter has a very worldly perspective on local and national politics.

Born in the United States, Merritt spent the first several years of her life traveling the world with her parents. She lived in Africa, India, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Indonesia, Greece, and Thailand, among other places, before moving to Mississippi at the age of 14. Then it was off to four years of boarding school in Switzerland, followed by college in California (her parents moved to  Ukraine and currently live in Thailand again.)

Merritt describes herself as "lefty lefty lefty lefy left" when it comes to social issues, but often moves a bit more to the right on economic policy. While she is in favor of more local rather than centralized control of government (a typically Republican stance), her liberal social views put her in the Democratic camp. Her staunch opposition to the mixing of religion and politics also puts her at odds with many of the current Republican Party power brokers. "I want religion out of the White House," Merritt says. "There is a reason for separation of church and state. God bless America? It is ridiculous. It is absurd."

I asked Merritt to explain how her family influenced her political opinions. She replied, "My dad is a staunch Republican . . . he thinks Democrats are impractical, but more than anything he encourages me to get involved and form an opinion. He didn't love that I campaigned for Kerry in '04, but he loved that I was campaigning. . . . He just likes for me to take a stance. You can't sit around and do nothing and then complain when things don't shake out the way you want."

I asked Merritt if many of her New York friends share her socially liberal/fiscally centrist viewpoint. She replied, "Well, for the most part New Yorkers are refreshingly like-minded. But I do think, having a parent who works for the government, I am maybe more sympathetic to other side. For the most part it isn't like Republicans just want to [mess things] up for America. It is hard to predict sometimes what will and won't benefit a nation."

She continued, "I do see things from both sides but my beliefs line up with the Democrats and the liberals 9.5 times out of 10."

I asked Merritt if, after a lifetime spent around the world, she identifies as an American.

She said, "I feel like an American but it can be disheartening. … when you think you have a really strong hold on things, really follow an election, understand the issues, form decisive opinions, and back them completely, give up free time and throw everything into campaigning . . . and then the elections swing the other way, it is heart breaking. . . . and then you wonder what the use is of fighting for a country where your political opinion is in the minority."

Finally, I asked this young New York voter who she intends to vote for in the general election in November.

She said, "I will say I like McCain much more than George W. I'm so inspired and excited by these elections and I think Obama may be the most charismatic candidate we've seen in my lifetime. I'm voting for him and I hope with my whole heart that he wins."