Photo courtesy of the Political Science Department at OU
The upcoming election has been a hot topic for the past three months. Between the various ads that pop up on social media, the constant campaign emails and the electoral texts that have been lighting up phones, it has been hard not to hear of it.
But why does it hold so much meaning? Why have the students at Oakland University been surrounded by ballot informers, Secretary of State representatives and so much more for the past couple of weeks?
“It’s a cliche, but this well and truly may be one of the most important elections in our lifetimes,” Associate Professor of Political Science Cody Eldredge said. “This isn’t about being Republican or Democrat for me. It’s about cherishing democracy and the institutions that sustain it.”
“I think that especially the youth. I think the youth need to decide what kind of system they want, and their votes right now contribute to answering that question,” Associate Professor of Political Science Laura Landolt said.
Landolt is a political science and international relations professor, and she emphasized the importance of environmental issues during and beyond the election.
“I think there’s a lot of hope that, you know, we can regain control over chemicals released into our environment. We can regain control over whether and how we can address climate change,” Landolt said. “All of these things are on the ballot, but none of that’s going to happen unless there’s grassroots activism and I see that that’s happening.”
The Political Science program is one of the liberal arts from OU’s Department of Arts and Sciences. Its faculty is at the forefront of students’ political landscape understanding, providing fertile ground for questions, initiatives and engagement opportunities.
“That’s what college is all about. Educate yourself by reading up, and by talking with friends and classmates,” Eldredge said. “You can also reach out to professors and advisers — we love talking about this stuff. Vote your truth.”
“I think students need to know that we think that voting is important … Either way, at least you’ve done what you could do in the ballot box, and that’s an important feeling to have,” Landolt said. “I mean, this is your future, you’re going to live a lot longer than college professors, at least the ones of today, so make the best of your future, do everything you can to get the best future.”
Landolt highlighted the importance of students pushing for a specific cause through many channels to make their voices heard.
“Voting is probably the least impactful of all democratic practices, and to actually have an impact I tell all my students, ‘At some point or another, you have to get involved in an issue that you find important,’” Landolt said. “You can’t conquer every issue in the world, but you have to focus on one thing. Pick one issue [and] really get to know that.”
“That is the most impactful action you can take, and if you can’t participate directly in that lobbying, then support those organizations, write editorials in the newspaper,” Landolt said. “There’s so many voting, except it is the least impactful. I’m not saying don’t do it, you need to do that, but once Election Day is over, we need to do other things, and lobbying directly, lobbying your officials is the most impactful way and mobilizing other students around your interests.”
“As with many, I feel like civic engagement is more important than ever. But I’m also optimistic. I get to spend my days with Gen-Z folks who are informed, passionate and understand what’s at stake in directing their government toward better ends,” Eldredge said. “OU students seriously give me hope. It’s one of the best parts of my job. I love talking about politics with students because I’m convinced we can rise to the occasion despite other generations failing us.”
This post was originally published on here
