Students at UWM were asked to participate in our country’s most treasured act of democracy by casting their votes at their assigned polling place, the first opportunity for most students.
There were several hot issues in this year’s election such as reproduction rights, immigration, the economy and civil unrest – just to name a few, that affected the way a student votes or question which candidate is best suited to be the 47th president.
Watching the debates can give students a general idea of what the candidates’ positions are on certain issues, and watching the debates allowed students to size up the candidates next to each other. Sometimes a candidate’s charisma, charm, or stature can outshine their competitor in such a way that it could result in being the thing that wins the election.
This was the case for John F. Kennedy when he debated against Richard Nixon in 1960. Kennedy looked charming, young and capable, while Nixon looked crotchety, sweaty, and out-of-touch. It just so happened, Kennedy won.
Three UWM students were asked about the debate, whether they watched it, were there any issues of importance to them, and if they have any thoughts about the candidates. Their responses were as varied as the diversity of our peers.
“I did not watch the debate, but I see a lot about it,” said Paytience Swedberg, a business marketing major from La Crescent, Minn. “From what I did see, Trump wasn’t great. He is always yapping and talking his stuff. And then Kamala, she did great I thought. I see a lot of points she made… well, I guess I see points on both sides. CNN was going over both of them like, ‘This is a lie, and that is a lie.’”
Swedberg talked about immigration as well.
“I think I saw some clips that were more about immigration policies and immigrants coming into the country,” Swedberg said. “I thought it was amazing that they addressed it. I’m hoping they address it, but I don’t know what I want from it.”
However, like many voters, Swedberg expressed concern with the candidates.
“I feel like no matter which candidate is in power, in the end, I feel like it won’t be great,” said Swedberg. “I don’t think there’s a great option. I want to say I love one side over the other, but I don’t. I think we could have done a better job with the pre-election, like getting other candidates in higher positions to make it more equal or to have other opinions. I think that would have made a big difference for me probably.”
She added that the debate didn’t add any clarity on who she wanted to vote for.
“I think Kamala needed to focus on the economy. If she could get on that side, that would be amazing. Trump is a big boy, so he has some power that way… I just think they’re very different people. So very different.”
“I watched the presidential debate in bits and pieces,” said Robert Zuege, a finance major from Wauwatosa. “honestly, there were some moments that I liked where both candidates showed some strength and power, but there were also moments I believe maybe there would be someone better for the job. Especially on the Republican side… I feel for a candidate like Kamala, being thrown in after Biden dropped out, she did a great job picking up after what was left.”
Zuege also expressed concerns with the two-party system.
“I feel that we really need to move away from presidential parties like Democrat and Republican. I feel that should not be a thing… Even though I don’t 100% agree with the Biden administration over the four years, being one of the presidents with the lowest school rating, and Kamala Harris being the vice president to that – I feel both sides really have weak points.”
Zuege added, “There aren’t any important issues to me this election other than keeping prices down, cost of living down and maybe college tuition… Student Loan Forgiveness is not that important to me, thanks to my parents. They saved up money over the years, so I’m speaking on behalf of someone who didn’t have that opportunity.”
After the debate, Zuege was still deciding who to vote for.
Shanell Housen is a biomedical science major from Milwaukee.
“I did not watch the debate, but I saw a couple of clips of it,” Housen says. “What stood out to me is Trump’s statement about the cats and dogs. I feel like that’s the most popular clip,” Housen said. “People are also talking about the fact that Trump was constantly getting fact checked. I think it was over 30 times.”
“What also stood out to me is how much more reserved Kamala was,” Housen added. “She spoke very intelligently, like she actually has a plan. A set plan for America, unlike Trump. Kamala is also a gun owner, so she won’t try to take away guns from Americans, but just try to set some laws in place to have more gun control when it comes to shootings – and school shootings especially. I also don’t think that the government should have a say in what a woman does with her body.”
“I don’t think Trump has as much education to back up the status he has,” says Housen. “Kamala was a prosecutor; she is well educated. I look at people and think, “Why? Why did you guys choose Trump of all people?”
“This election is really different than the other ones.” She adds, “I feel really strongly about this one, especially since some of these laws affect women, affects me as a woman, affects immigrants, race… I just really wanted Kamala to win. First of all, she would have been the first woman president- that would have been a good change for America; to have a different perspective, a different leader, different background, especially to contribute to American society.”