On November 5, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump went head-to-head in the 2024 presidential election. As Riverside Brookfield High School students reach the age of 18, they become eligible to vote. RB seniors Diana Garcia and Andrea Hernandez voice their opinion on this election.
The electoral college, made up of 538 members, is based on a state’s population and has a heavy influence on the turnout of every presidential election. Through a citizen’s vote, state electors commit to a candidate.
“It means a lot,” Garcia said. “I’m excited to vote for our possibly first woman president and someone highly qualified. It’s exciting, but sometimes, I also question the worth of my vote because of the electoral college and the way that system is set up.”
On June 2, 2024, Mexico’s first female president was elected. Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, the former mayor of Mexico City, is now serving as Mexico’s 66th president. In the 2016 presidential election, former President Trump and Hillary Clinton were competing. Potentially, Clinton could have become the first female president. In this year’s 2024 election, female Vice President Harris ran.
“I’m going up there and doing my part as a citizen and exercising my right to vote, something that people who work here—do labor—sometimes don’t have the opportunity to do,” Hernandez said. “It’s amazing that it’ll be our first year voting, and there’s a woman in office, which makes me happy because I know that Mexico also elected their first woman president. Hopefully we can keep opening these doors and moving forward.”
Affairs within the economy, immigration, healthcare, and climate change worlds have been prominent talking points in both candidates’ campaigns and rallies. Many concerns have been raised within the access of healthcare for women, in addition to the growing interests in both candidates’ plans for how they will make an impact on the economy.
“I feel as though we either continue as a country and we grow, or we just completely fall apart,” Garcia said. “Not only as a queer person, but also as a Latina, it’s scary. I’m happy that Kamala is running because she is more representative of this country’s demographic. She understands our communities.”
In the wake of the 2024 election, many students at the age of 18 are registered to vote and are prepared to use their right as an American citizen to voice their opinions.
“It’s a lot of pressure,” Hernandez said. “Four years on people’s shoulders—at the end of the day, it’s about moving forward as a country and doing what’s best for the country. It’s clear that some people don’t have that intention. If you’re going to be running, you should be running for the people and not your selfish needs. To me, it still doesn’t feel real. I acknowledge the significance, though. I’m able to vote. Stay humble.”
A candidate’s stance on the main issues on the ballot this year are able to crucially affect their public image. Within different campaign strategies, candidates tend to appeal to different groups of people meaningfully.
“People always want candidates that are perfect and fit their ideals, when really it’s just not realistic,” Hernandez said. “In this case, I’m voting for the person I believe will move us forward in this country and help us build up rather than tear us down.”
Garcia is excited to share the opportunity of voting for the first time with her mother and expresses the importance of voting for those that are unable to.
“My mom has never voted before,” Garcia said. “Every election, she’s either in Mexico, or something comes up—and I’m happy because the first time that she gets to vote is also mine. We get to share that experience.”
