On Friday, March 4, Bernie Sanders made his way to Edwardsville, Ill., for a rally. Held in the Sam A. Vadalabene Center on the campus of Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville, the fire marshal said they could squeeze about 5,000 people in the venue without breaking fire code. Honestly, I expected a smaller turnout than most of his rallies. I mean, if you know anything about Edwardsville, you know that it houses some very serious crime. Personally, I usually wouldn't visit by choice. I figured many people felt the same, and the turnout would be lower than usual.
Boy, was I wrong.
Around 6 a.m., our group rolled out of Cape Girardeau, Mo., to take the two-and-a-half hour drive so we could hear Bernie Sanders speak. The doors were set to open at 8 a.m., and we arrived around 8:40. From the door of the venue to the end of the line, it was around a half mile. The line stretched through a tunnel under a highway and back into the woods. That was just at 8:40. It actually got longer after that.
While in line, we met some amazing people. We stood behind a professor from SIUE, who held a great discussion with us. He didn't blow us off because of our age, which I really appreciated (I attended a Hillary Clinton campaign meeting where I was pushed aside when I wanted to talk because I was only 18). I was taken aback by the fact that I didn't meet one rude or pessimistic person. Even the media was very welcoming. I had a friend come from his high school who got to sit in the press box and got some help from the reporters there. Maybe even more importantly, though, was the fact that everyone there was adamant that Bernie could be our next president, and that was a nice feeling, since so many people are skeptics.
We ended up waiting in line for about two-and-a-half hours, in the 37 degree weather. We got to the front of the line, maybe 20 people in front of us, when they decided to suspend entrance to decide how many more people they could let in. The professor I mentioned earlier let us go in front of him so we had a better chance of getting in. Sadly, they capped it for good about ten people in front of us. Talk about disappointment; we thought we had drove all that way and waited hours for nothing.
Bernie Sanders made an appearance outside to talk to the nearly 1500 people who didn't get into the venue. I was so impressed that he took the time to come out and talk to those of us who waited hours to see him. He made our trip worth it.
At this rally, I saw much more than a packed house. I saw thousands of people willing to help each other out in more situations than one. I saw thousands of people ready for a change in our political system. I saw a candidate who cared about all of his potential voters - not just the ones inside. I saw a candidate who truly appreciated the dedication of every single person in attendance.
To put it in shorter terms, I saw a candidate that could take the election through his compassion and policy, and the force of voters that are determined to make it happen.
I've never seen anything like it before in all my nearly 19 years. The force of voters wasn't this strong with Obama, nor with Clinton now or eight years ago. It impressed me that, in a town of 24,000, over 6,500 people were trying to cram into a tiny auditorium to hear this man speak. They were signing up to canvas, to phonebank, and to volunteer for future events. Everyone was willing to do their part, whether it was volunteering, donating, or just spreading the word.
Overall, one very clear message rang out from the rally on Tuesday: Bernie Sanders could very possibly be the next president of the United States, no matter who says it's impossible.
