Do you like making new friends? Finding people you click with and can have fun with is so important in life. Don’t bring unnecessary drama into a friendship by discussing politics because chances are, the two of you could have opposing views. In light of this year’s election, it is important to understand that politics is a big source of conflict in our society, am I wrong? However, just because the other 99% of the world is discussing who’s better–Trump or Hillary–it doesn’t mean you have to get sucked into that whirlwind vacuum of awkwardness and heated discussion. You can be that 1% that just simply disengages or doesn’t associate themselves in the situation at all. From my personal experience here’s how I’ve learned to....

Don’t engage in conversation that involves politics, particularly those politics that involve who’s better– Trump or Hillary– because as I’m sure most of you know, that conversation never ends on a positive note. One person is always put off by the other for supporting Trump’s racist or sexist views and the other person is just dumbfounded by how someone could support Hillary and her *emails.* Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter, because by simply not engaging in a political discussion with your newfound friend, you are keeping the peace and trust me, your friendship is better for it.

Don’t blatantly ask someone if they’re a Trump or Hillary supporter, because whichever way that conversation goes, there could still be conflict. Say your friend is a Hillary supporter, and well, so are you. Yayyyyyy... but hold on. Why does your friend support Hillary? Oh, it’s because she’s not Trump. Hold up! What? This is not a legitimate reason to support Hillary! And so the conflict ensues. You disagree with her, she disagrees with you, you get into the heat of things, and your friendship suffers for it. If there’s one question you dare not ask upon becoming friends with someone, it’s “are you a Trump or Hillary supporter?” Just avoid the question. There’s no one forcing you to ask that question but yourself, and if you want to build a strong friendship with someone, your political views really should be left out of it. When you look up "friendship" in the dictionary, you don’t see “a mutual agreement on political views.” No, of course you don’t, because you and your friends don’t always share the same political views, so why jeopardize your friendship by bringing in politics? You could probably go your whole life knowing someone and never know if they’re a liberal or a conservative, and that is more than okay.

Most importantly, don’t feign your support of the opposing side just so you won’t get on your friend’s bad side. Never compromise what you believe, because that becomes a reflection on yourself, and not a good one. If you’re a liberal, be a liberal. Don’t pretend you have conservative views just to appease your friend who is a conservative. And don’t pretend to agree with certain conservative views when really you don’t. These are all ways people can mix friendship with politics, and it’s not worth it. Simply take my advice and avoid politics altogether. Don’t mix politics with friendship; it has the potential to create unnecessary conflict.