Thursday, June 26, 2008
The 2008 election campaigns have already started gearing up for November and a few political science students found ways to get involved over the summer.
Most campaign work involves door-to-door canvassing, registering voters and talking with voters about their concerns.
David Greenwald, Overland Park senior, works as a field director for U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), who is running for reelection as one of Kansas’ senators.
David Jones, Kansas City, Kan., senior, helps Mintoy Tolbert, Lawrence, change her address for voter registration Monday evening at Broken Arrow Park. Jones works in community outreach for the Kansas Democratic Party.
“I wanted to get involved because I love politics and I want to have a career in it,” Greenwald said. “I feel a civic duty; everyone should be doing their part to get things done.”
Burdett Loomis, professor of political science, helped Rachelle Netzer, Lawrence senior, get her summer job.
“Campaigns offer a great way to get involved in politics,” Loomis said. “They’re sort of like accordions — they keep expanding during the election season, and then fold up once the election is over.”
Netzer works as a campaign fundraising assistant for 54th District State Representative candidate, Bruce Cooper. She interviewed with the Kansas Democratic Party, which asked her if she wanted to work on Cooper’s campaign. Netzer wanted to work on a local level after having worked on the national level during a Washington, D.C., internship with U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“Politics seemed intangible to me at first, but it’s really pretty easy to get involved, especially as a volunteer,” Netzer said. “It’s hard for Representatives to know what issues matter to students if they’re not involved.”
David Jones, Kansas City, Kan., senior, works in community outreach for the Kansas Democratic Party in Wyandotte, Shawnee and Douglas counties.
“I think this is a historic election,” Jones said. “A lot is going on in the world right now and if you don’t think it’s affecting you now, it will later. Not everyone writes letters to their congressperson, but everyone should at least vote.”
A Harvard University Institute of Politics survey done in April revealed that caucus turnout among 18 to 29-year-olds tripled in Midwest states like Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
The survey also found that with 18 to 24-year-olds, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) supporters show more interest in volunteering than U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) supporters. Sixty-three percent of Obama supporters said they would volunteer for his campaign compared to 54 percent of McCain supporters.
“All in all, we’re better off if large numbers of students and young people get involved in campaigns,” Loomis said. “They’re messy and often frustrating, but they offer a great chance to test drive a career, gain real-world skills and reach a more sophisticated understanding of the world of politics.”
— Edited by Matt Hirschfeld
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