With Election Day less than two months away, the race for president between Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican, is neck and neck. Compass News asked students around the Ammerman Campus who they are supporting. The big picture is that there’s no front-runner among Suffolk students. In fact, some are undecided or may sit out the race entirely.
Seeking More Government Transparency
Nick Simpson, 19
Major: Criminal Justice
Voting for: Donald Trump
As a criminal justice major, 19-year-old Nick Simpson, of Patchogue, said he is excited to be voting in his first presidential election.
“I feel like voting is such a big thing. Last year, I voted for the [county] executive election and I took a picture with my sticker and everything!”
Simpson is a registered Independent who sees faults in both the Democratic and Republican parties. His love for criminal justice and budding interest in political science often leave him craving transparency in government so he has a better understanding of what’s really happening.
“There’s a real lack of transparency within the current administration,” he said. “I’m Independent because I don’t agree with everything that Trump says, and there are some things that Kamala says that make sense. Neither candidate is the greatest. I just think that worse versus worse, Trump would be better. His policies are transparent–he says what he thinks.”
Simpson said it seems many voters in the past few election cycles have opted for the lesser of two evils.
Simpson supports abortion rights, the police, and is avidly concerned about border problems in the United States. Some of those beliefs may conflict; Trump’s vice president being unabashedly anti-abortion and he supports some of Harris’ more liberal stances.
Regardless of who wins, although Simpson is betting on Trump, he said it’s the act of voting and the opportunity to make your voice heard that is most important.
“When you see the voting number come in and how many people voted overall, it’ll be cool to be like, ‘Oh, I was one of those people!’”
–Alex McDonald
With RFK Jr. Out of the Race, Not Sure Who to Vote For
Dylan Jiron White, 20
Major: Undeclared
Voting for: Undecided
Dylan Jiron White, a 20-year-old undeclared major from Southampton, is not sure who he will vote for.
“I first was a really big RFK Jr. fan,” he said, referring to Independent Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who backed out of the race to support former President Trump.
“I really liked him,” White said of Kennedy. “I honestly felt like he was telling the truth. There’s no underlying meaning behind what he was saying.”
Now that Kennedy has dropped out of the race, White doesn’t know where he stands. “I don’t really align myself with Kamala very much, and neither with Trump.”
However, since Kennedy recently endorsed Trump, White said he might vote for him, or not vote in the presidential election at all.
White did not watch the debate but did watch clips of it afterward. “It just made me realize how bad our political ecosystem is right now.”
Since Kennedy Jr. dropped out of the race, White is in between not voting in the presidential election at all or voting for Trump.
— Connor Yee Kee
Aborting Rights Supporter Won Over By A Candidate
Haley Garafola, 19
Major: Secondary Education, English Focus
Voting for: Undecided
Haley Garafola is in her third semester at Suffolk. She lives in Port Jefferson, and at 19, she is excited to vote for the first time on Nov. 5.
She laughed and leaned in to say she was undecided about who to support as president.
“I’m half-and-half with politics. I agree with certain things on one side but may not agree with everything,”
Garafola, who said she is neutral regarding politics, still doesn’t know who she will vote for in the election. She hoped to be persuaded by the Sept. 10 debate but wasn’t.
“Everyone deserves a chance, everyone deserves an opinion,” she said, believing people should not be broken apart but rather agree to disagree.
While she may be unsure about who she will vote for as president, she is a clear supporter of abortion rights, saying women must have control of their own healthcare.
“We should be able to have control of what we do and not go back in time.”
—Jadyn Kass
A Stressful Situation
Schneider Thermidor, 18
Major: Business
Voting for: Donald Trump
Away from the hustle, bustle, and chitchat of the Ammerman Campus Club Fair, Schneider Thermidor, 18, of Coram is considering voting in the upcoming election, although he is apprehensive.
“I have plans on voting, but I’m not sure if I’ll get to it,” Thermidor said. “I feel like the whole process of voting is very strenuous, and very taxing on not only your health but the people around you.”
“Not only do you have to fight with that, you have to fight with the idea of you actually being wrong when they actually do get into office.”
If Thermidor does get the chance to vote, he will be casting his vote for Donald Trump. “I think that his policies are fair, and I did notice that it was less of a price raise, less inflation when he was there,” Thermidor said.
Thermidor is confident in his choice but will remain silent about it. “Once I tell people, I’m sure arguments will spark up,” he said.
“It will be exciting, but I might just keep it to myself until I know I’m with someone that I’m comfortable with.”
—Katherine Rosier
Youthful Politics
Saramichele Isidore, 18
Major: Philosophy
Voting for: Kamala Harris
With dreadlocks down to her waist and a black Converse T-shirt, Saramichele Isidore may come across as very carefree and easygoing, but behind her casual attire and contagious smile, she hides a brilliant political mind.
For Saramichele, or Sara, politics and the upcoming presidential election are something to be taken seriously by today’s youth. “Not enough young people are voting,” said the 18-year-old philosophy major from Miller Place.
Isidore cited key issues, such as the balance of power in the United States Supreme Court, taxes, the environment, and inflation as important to her as a first-time voter.
She discussed how Vice President Kamala Harris was a more appealing candidate because she was “younger” and brought with her more “fresh ideas.”
“Originally, I was going to support Donald Trump. But when President Biden dropped out of the race, I began to view Vice President Harris as a better candidate,” explained Isidore with passion in her voice.
She emphasized that her educators at Suffolk County Community College empowered her to think more critically, and helped broaden her political horizons. Isidore additionally stressed that no matter what one’s political leanings are, today’s youth should at least be involved citizens.
“Involve yourself by voting and know your candidates!”
—Brian Dreher
A Future Voter?
Helios Martin, 18
Major: Liberal Arts
Voting for: Kamala Harris
At the Babylon Student Center, Helios Martin, 18, is a liberal arts major from Patchogue who believes that his political opinions should be kept to himself. Sitting anxiously alone in the cafeteria, Helios gets to express his political beliefs.
“Politics gives me anxiety and a lot of the time, I do not agree with other people’s beliefs. I keep my beliefs to myself and mind my own business,” Helios said, “I’d vote myself for president.” Helios then went silent and giggled for a bit.
Nervous, Helios finally opened up about what presidential candidate he would choose.
“If I were to choose somebody, I would pick Kamala Harris because I’m rooting for an African-American woman to be in charge.”
About to finish his lunch, Helios gave more insight into why he would vote for Kamala Harris. “More people are able to relate to her and I feel that she is a real person and has better insights to many things rather than the other candidate,” he said.
“I don’t know because if I do, I’ve contributed, and it could be taken for the worst [making the wrong decision]. If I don’t then I’m not helping the country at all. We’ll see.”
—Ronil Guevara
