Super Tuesday is Nov. 5. After the seemingly never-ending Halloweekend at Georgia State University, the tension on the campus is apparent. This election comes down to two candidates: Kamala Harris and Donald J. Trump.
32,425 students voted in the previous 2020 presidential election, while total student enrollment sat at 49,273 according to statistics released alongside the university’s 2022 Campus Plan. This equates to a voting rate of 70%.
For the 2023-2024 school year, Georgia State was designated as a Voter Friendly Campus by the Fair Election Center, in which only 258 universities received this designation. The aim of a Voter Friendly Campus is to bolster political participation according to Georgia State University.
This increase in the drive to support student voting has undoubtedly led to major changes for the state. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger shared in a press announcement published on his website, “As of Monday at 12:30 pm, Georgians surpassed the 2.73 million mark for Early Voting with 2,739,787 check-ins, shattering previous Early Voting performance.”
Georgia is one of the seven swing states and both candidates have been actively campaigning in aim of getting the younger vote. They have even held rallies at the convocation center and other colleges and universities within the state.
Although students at State seem to be leaning blue, there are still diverging opinions.
Makena Helms, a senior at Georgia State, voted early for Kamala Harris.
“I think that a lot of Kamala’s policies, particularly as they pertain to women’s rights and reproductive rights, are very appealing to me, especially given the initial first term of Trump’s presidency and kind of the massive step backward for women and trans people and LGBTQ+ people and for immigrants,” she said. “I feel as though her stances on all of those issues are much more stable in the long term.”
She went on to say that there did seem to be an effort from the university to engage voters.
“I went back home to vote,” she said. “I did see a concerted effort from the university itself to engage voters which I thought was a good thing unilaterally because I think no matter which direction you are going I do think it’s important to feel as though you have the space to vocalize and put that information out there.”
Niamoi Allen, a senior at Georgia State, also early voted for Kamala Harris.
“I voted for Kamala because I really lean with her opinions on women’s rights and reproductive rights,” she said. “Also the LGBTQ+, I believe it will be a lot safer under her administration. I also just personally don’t agree with a lot of the hate and bigotry that was being perpetuated under the Trump administration and some of the things he is still saying are heinous. I can’t vote for somebody like that.”
Allen also agrees that GSU is helping in the voter registration effort.
“I definitely saw them (Georgia State) out there helping kids register to vote which I think was awesome,” she said. “And I think even today I’ve seen some people out tonight with Kamala Harris signs and also ‘Hey, check your status and make sure you’re able to vote.’”
Max Wilson, a sophomore at Georgia State, voted early for Donald Trump.
“I think Kamala and her administration are not fit for the presidency,” he said. “They seem inexperienced and Trump’s policies on border control seem better in my opinion, and I just think he is the better candidate this year.”
Wilson thinks “it’s pretty clear” which way Georgia State leans.
“I don’t have a problem with it,” he said. “I’m definitely an outsider and people can think whatever they want to think.”
Yusuf Remilli, a junior at Georgia State, is voting for Kamala Harris. His main reason for voting for her is economics and experience.
“She’s had a lot of time as a prosecutor and has had time in office as Vice President,” he said. “So she was exposed to the ways things have been running. She did well as a prosecutor as well. I like her tax plan as well. It seems to benefit the general population and Trump’s tax plan seems to have been used previously and it shows that it doesn’t work. The more money the upper class has is not always going to end up trickling down. It doesn’t incentivize people to spend more. If you stimulate the lower class in the economy and the middle class as well, they will have more money to use to spend for certain things.”
Remilli also agrees that GSU seems to lean blue.
“The political climate at State doesn’t seem too diverse,” he said. “Everybody is entitled to their own opinions on things. At least generally, for Georgia State, it seems like it’s a lot more leaning towards one side than it seems like in Greek life [at Georgia State.]”
Groups on campus have seen the impact of this year’s election on young voters at Georgia State’s campus. Young Dems shared that this year, they’ve seen a spike in involvement as we draw closer to the election.
“I think that this election has really highlighted that there are issues on the ballot that really matter,” said Sarah Forberger, a member of Young Dems. “I think it’s kind of a wakeup call, especially for young people”
Forberger herself shared that with this upcoming election, she’s excited to be casting her ballot for a female candidate.
“I was absolutely thrilled to cast my ballot for a woman. I think it’s really special to see someone that reflects yourself. I am really passionate about that and making sure that representation is shown” said Forberger.
