McKenzie Fleeman
mdf001@marietta.edu
When the Ohio Primary took place on Tue., March 15 many Marietta College students were at the polls to cast their vote.
Gwyneth Nelson, a freshman health science major, voted in the primary. Nelson thinks voting is definitely important for college students because they are the future of the country and need familiarity with election processes.
Nelson feels strongly about gun control, a much-contested issue among the candidates.
“I also feel strongly about immigration, vaccines, foreign policy in general, and domestic affairs,” she said.
Nelson believes that social media has become an additional platform for the presidential candidates to bring attention to their campaigns.
“I think social media has influenced my voting choices to an extent. It has solidified my beliefs and given me things to look up on more reliable websites,” Nelson said.
Samantha Welch, a sophomore political science major, didn’t vote in the Ohio Primary because she is a resident of the state of Montana and wanted to be registered there to elect state representatives in the fall.
“I am a registered Democrat and I plan on voting for Hillary Clinton,” Welch said.
Welch is especially concerned about healthcare in the upcoming election.
“I believe that healthcare is a right that should not be denied to any citizen, and I think Obamacare was a step in the right direction,” she said. “That being said, I don’t think that it’s a perfect system by any means.”
Welch is also concerned with the rising prices of prescription medication.
“It shouldn’t be two different problems to get into the doctor and diagnosed and then another issue altogether to actually get the prescription. The rising cost of prescription drugs shouldn’t be the dictate whether or not a person gets the medication they need to function,” she said.
Even though Welch does not always agree with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, she thinks it is great that he has gotten so many young people interested in the election and politics by bringing focus to relevant issues like higher education and student loan debt. She also feels that it is important to express your right to vote, if you feel prepared to do so.
“Making an educated decision is much more important than just picking the candidate with the D or R next to the name,” Welch said.
The Office of Civic Engagement (OCE) is there to help Marietta College students with the voting process. Maribeth Saleem–Tanner, director of the OCE, thinks that students want to vote, but they do not always know how to go through the process.
“In the past, we have driven people to the polls if they needed a ride and we stopped for doughnuts on the way back,” Saleem-Tanner said.
The OCE distributes information about how to register to vote and makes announcements on campus.
“I think sharing the information has been the biggest thing we are working on,” Saleem-Tanner said.
The OCE wants students to understand that although it may not seem like voting makes a direct change, it does matter who your representatives in government are. The results of elections impact people’s day to day life, and students have the power to voice their opinion.
