The United States Presidential Election is closing in on voters of all ages and the 2024 election has many people on edge. With everyone hoping that the candidate of their choice wins and the ever-shifting American values have created a tense environment in the weeks leading up to the election. This tenseness will likely continue for even a little while after the results of the election are announced considering how polarized the 2024 election is.
With four years passing between major elections, the American people start to value different things, and after decades of doing presidential elections, these values have changed greatly. At each new election cycle there are new issues at the forefront of the candidates and the people’s minds. This year, the topics that candidates and voters are both most concerned about seem to be reproductive freedom and global affairs.
Nicholas Fryer, a fourth year at Winona State and the President of the Winona State College Democrats poses a question that many voters may want to consider, “What kind of country do we want to live in?” Fryer responds to this question himself by stating that Democrats want to live in a country, “where reproductive freedom and the right to vote are essential.”
Despite differences in Republican and Democrat views on certain topics, many consider the same issues to be the ones at stake in the upcoming election. No matter what political views people may align with, it is easy to see what is on everyone’s minds on both sides of the political spectrum.
Ava Schroeder, a fourth-year at Winona State and the President of Winona State College Republicans believes that there are many things at stake in this election, but some are going to sway voting decisions more than others.
“The areas that are going to determine this election are women’s reproductive health and rights, how to handle immigration, border security and policy, global affairs, and if the US should be the world police or noninterventionist,” Schroeder said. “A big issue at stake is honestly our trust in the Democratic process, which is a major theme of this election. With the ballot boxes being burnt that’s a major hit to peoples trust in democracy.”
Democracy is another issue that may not immediately come to everyone’s minds when thinking about what’s at stake in the 2024 election, but it is actually something that many consider to be a major thing at stake in the upcoming election.
“I recommend that people read up on Project 2025 and its plans. In project 2025, they want to ban abortion nationwide with no exceptions. They want to eliminate the department of education, and the federal student loan programs in that department.” Fryer Said.
It is clear that there are many issues brought up, from reproductive freedom, to border security and democracy itself. Many Americans will have to decide where they land on these key issues, and some may even remain undecided.
“American citizens have the right to vote. But as a country, we should be so grateful that we have the right and opportunity when there are so many countries where no one really has a right to vote,” Schroeder said. “I also think that a lot of people think that their one vote doesn’t have an effect… we have probably close to 80 to 100 million Americans that aren’t voting that have the opportunity, and that could easily swing the election.”
Sometimes it’s easy to lose track of how even the largest election in the United States, the Presidential election, will affect people’s personal lives. It is easy to think that remaining undecided is a good way to go because in a national election individual votes don’t feel as though they count. However, there are so many ways the national election can, and will, affect people on a personal scale.
“We cannot afford to sit on the sidelines when politics directly affects your everyday life such as the roads that you drive on or the sidewalk that you walk on or the tuition that you pay. These very things that I had just mentioned are decided through policy made by our elected leaders. That’s why you need to vote because the people that we elect are the ones who make those kinds of decisions affects you, but you have the power to control how those decisions are made at the ballot box.” Fryer said.
Election season can be exciting for many, but an excruciating and anxiety riddled time of year for others. As we wait for the election results to come in sometime after polls close Nov. 5, 2024, it is important to remember that no matter the result, using your voice is truly the most important part of any election season.
