Inspired by Humans of New York, I decided to stop and interview people about the upcoming primary election. The whole nation looks to New Hampshire because it has always been the first state to hold primaries. New Hampshire is a hub of politics so I was interested in seeing how living and going to school here has affected student’s politic involvement.
Caroline:
“Living on this campus helped me be aware of all the opportunities I had to get involved. The location of the campus makes it convenient to potentially meet the future president which a lot of campuses don’t get the opportunity to.”
Peter:
“Prior to the age of 18 I was not really involved. Coming of age at University of New Hampshire, it definitely encouraged me to educate myself, be more aware, and use my right to vote. What encouraged me most to use the right to vote was all the campus excitement about it. Growing up in New Hampshire I wish I had educated myself more but I remember going to the polls with my mom because it was such a big deal and standing in the booth with her.”
Maddy:
“This was my first year voting and I think being at UNH had a huge role in my decision to finally vote. The number of opportunities to get myself educated on current politics was extensive here on campus. Being able to see Bernie Sanders speak was a privilege and was a huge spark in my interest in politics. In addition, the university made it so easy for students to get transportation to and from the polls.”
Ashley:
“Before I lived on a college campus I had no idea about politics. Now that I live on a college campus, people are more vocal about who they want as a president and it easier to get educated. This year was my first year voting because the school makes it so easy to vote and there is no reason to not vote. I left the polls feeling super good that I just contributed to society. Everything is just so accessible on a college campus which makes it really easy to vote.”
Britta:
“It was pretty easy to volunteer for things because there were a lot of stuff going on around campus. Just in New Hampshire, there is a lot more visibility of the campaigns because going home to Connecticut there is not the much going on.”
Abby:
“Coming here from Minnesota the first thing I notice was all the excessive amount of political talk and campaigns. Where I’m from there is not much public talk about politics so it was really easy for me to get educated about the candidates being on campus. It is super cool that I could meet the next president out here.”