I get it. You’re too busy during the school year with essays, group projects, and exams on top of exams. Now that it’s summer, you feel you have no spare time between your summer job(s), reconnecting with long-lost friends from your hometown, or catching up with Season 3 of "Orange is the New Black." I get it; you have no time to invest in anything other than what needs to be done ASAP. However, it is extremely important to keep up with the upcoming 2016 presidential election.
As "future adults” soon to emerge into the real world, college students need to pay more attention to the presidential election. It’s important to really know and research candidates before you cast your vote. You should know what they have supported, voted for or against in the past, and what they plan to do if elected into office.
I’m sure you have heard this speech from everyone and their mother. You’re also probably wondering how to get started. Thanks to the World Wide Web, there are infinite resources at our disposal to learn about the presidential election.
Take a quiz. I know we all love BuzzFeed quizzes about "Harry Potter" and "who our celebrity soulmate would be," but take a practical quiz about where you stand on the political spectrum. There’s a great quiz on PBS.org that asks you basic questions about current issues and you can find out where you stand generally stand. This is my favorite political quiz because it’s simple and quick. However, I recommend taking many different quizzes to see if you’re more on the fence about certain topics.
From there, you can feel out the type of candidate that best suits you based on where you fall on the political spectrum. With this information, visit a candidate’s campaign website and all forms of social media. Here, you can read up on a candidate’s bio, their campaign, their plan of action, and how to support them if you wish to do so. There is a great political site that has compiled all of this information.
Finally, watch the news and debates. It’s important to understand all points of view represented in the election. You can be up to speed on how the candidates respond to current affairs *cough cough Iran Nuclear Deal* and find out more on how they plan to run the country.
Don’t be swayed by scandals or mudslinging in the media without looking further into these stories. You might end up liking a candidate more by seeing how they have handled themselves in a bad situation. Also, don’t be persuaded by the political opinion of your parents without first forming your own. You could find out that you disagree with them on politics and how the country should be run. And that’s okay, too. You are your own person with your own life and your own opinions. Additionally, the United States government acknowledges these rights to liberty with the right to vote. As commonly quoted by Uncle Ben Parker: “with great power comes great responsibility.”
Please vote responsibly.
