A handful of MFS seniors are now 18 and are therefore eligible to vote in this year’s election. While a few of them feel excited to finally be able to have a role in our country’s electoral process, the others have experienced anxiety surrounding their new role.
“I’m feeling pretty excited overall, to be honest. I’ve been politically engaged, I would say, since around the 2016 election, but I obviously have not been able to engage with politics in this way up until now,” said Luke Iacono ’25.
Other students didn’t outright state they were as politically involved but still expressed their excitement about voting in the election.
“I am voting this year. I’m excited to vote because it’s a coming- thing, and I’m excited to have my voice heard on a bigger scale and level as a part of becoming a legal adult,” explained Rosie Paznokas ’25.
Logan Shields ’25 shared not only her excitement but how she was getting ready for the election.
“In regards to past elections, I have researched this year’s election a lot more. I’ve watched a lot of debates for both presidential candidates and vice presidents, and I’ve researched their beliefs, policies, and also what they’ve done in their communities as well,” noted Shields. She continued, “I’ve been researching just the type of person [the candidates] are, so I’ve been watching a lot of interviews with all of the candidates just to see how they are as a person [and] how they interact with others.”
However, some students haven’t felt as excited.
Jack Cranmer ’25 explained, “I think one of the things I’m struggling with as a first-time voter is that I’m not really intrigued by either candidate, and I think in a way as a first-time voter, [that] makes it more difficult … when you’re not really sure on who to vote for it can become very, very easy to be swayed by one side.”
Cranmer elaborated on how he is preparing for the election, despite not being drawn to either candidate. “What I’m just trying to do is really research things. I’ve watched the presidential debate, along with the one vice presidential debate. And I’m really just [looking for] which side is my vision of how I want to see the USA,” he remarked.
Shields explained,“My biggest anxiety for this election is just the outcome of it and how people are going to react to it … I know there is going to be a lot of backlash, no matter who wins, so I’m a little nervous to see how this plays out and what’s going to happen for the future of our country.”
Not all the students have experienced anxiety, however; most seemed relatively comfortable due to previous knowledge of the voting process. “I don’t really have any anxiety, because I went with my mom [when] she voted when I was younger, so I got to see how it works and everything,” explained Paznokas.
Iacono explained that he wasn’t notably nervous either. “I’m not really worried at all, to be honest. I have a pretty strong faith in our electoral process, and I trust that the outcome of this election is going to be reflective of what the American people, as expressed through the albeit imperfect electoral college, do want for this country, and as long as that’s how my preferred candidate wins or loses, I have faith in our electoral process.”
