While Rowan students have been busy this past week with homecoming and midterms, Election Day has been crawling up for registered student voters.
Since in-person early voting began in the state of New Jersey on Saturday, Oct. 26, many students have been casting ballots through the mail or by traveling back to their hometowns, which ended on Sunday, Nov. 3.
As people exercised their right to vote early, they also found this voting form accessible and convenient as college students by having the opportunity to choose what day they can vote to balance their school schedule.
“It was easier voting with being a student with my school schedule due to the fact I got to pick the specific day I wanted to go vote,” said junior public relations major, Julia Vega. “I voted early over the weekend so it was very convenient for that sake that I don’t have classes on Fridays and the weekend.”
Leo Windrem, a sophomore radio television & film major, found the in-person early voting process straightforward and fulfilling.
“It was pretty simple, I just went to the place and everyone was really nice,” said Windrem. “They just take your name and you go into the booth. It felt good, you know, because it’s my first time being able to vote for the president, so it was pretty cool.”
Other students such as senior radio-television & film student Tom Mcghee voted by mail-in ballot.
“I got a ballot mailed to my house address and then my mom and dad had to mail it here to Rowan so I could do it and put it in the mailbox because I live on campus,” said Mcghee. “I had to have my mom go through the steps with me to figure out how to fill the ballot.”
Student voters are casting their ballots with hopes that their top concerns, such as women’s reproductive rights and accessible healthcare, will be prioritized throughout the newly elected president’s term.
Daniela Correia, a junior communication studies major, highlighted how women’s reproductive rights and securing adequate healthcare are significant issues for voters.
“I feel women’s rights currently in our country have gone backwards so much, in such a short period of time,” said Correia. “With the election, it’s one of the most important things we are looking at as well as healthcare and education.”
With the US Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 causing an uproar, some students found that women’s rights played a role in who they were going to vote for this time around.
“Abortion rights are a major part of what I want to see in a candidate and I’m definitely very pro-choice so the overturning definitely plays a fact in who I’m going to vote for,” said Madison Lindner, the secretary of the College Democrats at Rowan. “As a woman, I feel I have the right to vote and I need to vote for people who are going to support women and not harm them in the end.”
For Allison Hillman, a senior communication studies major, she found reproductive rights to be an important issue that voters should consider during the election season.
“I know that I would like my rights to be protected, for example, I take birth control and I’ve taken birth control since I was sixteen years old,” said Hillman. “So the fact that if a certain candidate gets into office and he’s threatening to take away access to that stuff, it does scare me because I rely on that every day.”
Some students voiced they wished healthcare was more accessible in the US, as this was another concern they hope the elected candidate improves upon.
“Healthcare hasn’t always been the most available thing in this country, and especially within the last two years with trying to get rid of Obama Care,” said Correia. “It has made it so much more difficult that I have no option even with the school to pay two to three thousand dollars extra out of my pocket. Also, if you don’t have insurance, it can make it so much harder to get birth control, abortions, or even just help with certain issues.”
As early votes, mail-in ballots, and election day ballots start to be tallied, student voters hope that the issues impacting their 2024 presidential vote will be addressed by the newly elected president.
“It’s important to realize that this isn’t a political issue, it’s healthcare,” said Hillman. “I don’t know why we’re mixing the two. I wish the other side would recognize that’s not their place to say and essentially control women’s bodies. It is very frustrating as a woman and it’s scary. That’s why I will be doing my part to hopefully deter some of that control and scariness. I encourage everybody to vote and do their part and do some research.”
For comments/questions about this story DM us on Instagram @thewhitatrowan or email features@thewhitonline.com
