The 2020 United States presidential election is only weeks away, and once again our country’s citizens are being placed in the position of deciding which candidate they should elect as the leader of the United States for the next four years. In preparation for this monumental date, the Winthrop University College Democrats are doing their part to encourage Winthrop students to vote and spread awareness about the Democratic party.
“Voting is how you express your views in a way that’s legally binding,” John Holder, the organization’s faculty advisor, said. “It makes you part of your community and part of the decision-making process. Younger voters are less likely to vote than members of any other age group, so the issues that concern your generation aren’t going to get addressed unless people like Winthrop students show up and get involved.”
This semester the Winthrop College Democrats are meeting every other Friday through the Zoom application at 11 a.m., with the meeting password available to the public through the group’s Instagram account.
Members of the organization and first-time attendees discuss potential ideas to spread voting and political awareness, as well as develop social media strategies and giveaways to encourage voter participation.
“This year we’ve had a slow start because of the COVID pandemic,” Nyssa Hemingway, president of the Winthrop College Democrats and junior political science major, said. “However, we’re still doing our best to stay active on campus Right now we’re planning debate watch parties for these next three debates. We’re also working to potentially partner with voting ambassadors to talk to students about the importance of voting and how to do mail-in ballots, since that’s such an important option for this election.”
The group also provides students with opportunities to volunteer in aiding local Democratic candidate campaign efforts and internships. The internship program, which is directed by Holder, gives aspiring political science majors and passionate Democratic party members the chance to gain experience in the political work environment, as well as opportunities to receive additional academic credit.
“Students who work for a campaign or a party or a government agency or a law firm can get one hour of academic credit for each 50 hours of work, up to three hours of credit for 150 hours of work,” Holder said. “You also write me a weekly journal and reflection paper at the end of the grading period. I help place people with internship employers, or you can make your own arrangements.”
“Volunteering on campaigns really opened my eyes to the adversity that people face,” Erin Emiroglu, the president of College Democrats for South Carolina and junior political science major, said. “I knew that these problems exist and that’s why I chose to align with the Democratic party, because their values are about helping these groups, but when you talk directly with the constituents, it gives you a whole new perspective and understanding of the challenges that communities face. This pushes me even more to work hard to get Democrats up and down the ballot.”
Students who are interested in reaching out to the Winthrop College Democrats can contact them through their email at collegedemocrats@mailbox.winthrop.edu or through their Instagram account @wu_democrats.
Photo by Emma Crouch
