Hamline students struggle to find time for politics
Nicole Ronchetti
Jordan Brezinka has been feeling more than a little overwhelmed. Not just by her coursework and regular responsibilities, which certainly don’t help, but by politics. The high stakes of the Democratic primaries combined with the staggering number of candidates are making it stressful for her to stay engaged.
“It’s the fact that there’s so many of them — I don’t have the time,” Brezinka said.
And she’s not alone. Many other Hamline students are facing similar difficulties balancing their time between academics and political engagement. And some, already confronted with the extraordinary stress of college life, find that adding politics into their long list of concerns is simply too much.
“Even if I had the time, I don’t have the mental space for it,” said Helen Pfeifer, another Hamline student.
With 17 candidates still running for the Democratifc nomination, the process of staying informed requires devoting a significant amount of time and effort, something full-time students struggle to do.
As a result a number of Hamline students are only following the primary tangentially. Many admitted that they only follow the race’s progress through headlines, and others cited Twitter as their primary news source.
The limits on time and information faced by students have led to other consequences as well. Because of the lack of detailed information, many feel inadequately prepared to decisively say who they would support in the Democratic primary. This is true even of those who plan to vote in the primary, like Brezinka.
“I don’t know any of their policies that deeply,” Brezinka said, adding that at this point she only has general impressions of candidates to base her opinions on.
But even among those students who haven’t been following the primary rigorously, many were able to name at least one candidate that stuck out to them.
“If I had to say anyone, it would probably be Warren,” said Lisette Perez-Caballero.
Other students also named Warren as someone they would support, if they had to choose. Another candidate that came up frequently in this regard was Pete Buttigieg.
“I’d say Warren, but I am interested in Pete’s youth,” said Pfeifer.
Brezinka also named Buttigieg as a candidate that has caught her attention as she’s been trying to keep up with the primary.
“He has a perspective a lot of politicians don’t have,” said Brezinka, adding, “I also like that he’s not a 70 year old man.”
While Brezinka and others are still trying to find the time to engage with the primaries and choose an individual to support, a few Hamline students have already found their candidates.
Among them is sophomore Jay Barker, who is a strong supporter of Kamala Harris, who he believes has what it takes to lead the country.
“I believe that somebody in the position of president needs to know what they are doing,” Barker said, adding about Kamala, “She knows her way around the political.”
Another Hamline student who has already decided who he will vote for in the primary is Christian Buonfiglio, who supports Bernie Sanders.
“I think that he’s proven to be able to gather a very large supporting base.” said Buonfiglio, adding that he views Sanders’ policies as the most empathetic.
But for those students who haven’t made a decision yet, there’s still time. Minnesota votes in the primaries on March 3, leaving nearly four months for people to research the candidates and their policies and potentially come to a decision.
Despite feeling overwhelmed at the moment, this is something that Brezinka plans to do once she has the chance. She hopes that after the stress of midterms end, she’ll be able to find the time to fit in political engagement into her schedule.
“Politics is important, and it’s worth investing the time,” Brezinka said.