Vice President Kamala Harris won Virginia’s electoral votes, but not by as big of a margin as polls had predicted, and Donald Trump won nearly every locality across southwest Virginia. There are some exceptions, in Radford and Montgomery County, home to 37,000 students at Radford University and Virginia Tech.
For a little insight, RadioIQ spoke with two young women from opposite sides of the political spectrum about whether they think Harris resonated with enough young voters.
Both of the students are engaged in politics, and can’t imagine not voting in this election. And while they disagree on just about every political policy, they do agree on one point: Kamala Harris did not present a passionate vision that inspired young voters.
“We need a future to look forward to,” said Sarah Showalter, a student at Radford University who identifies as a liberal. “And candidates that are only talking about the past does not mobilize us, is what I think.”
Showalter is a junior, majoring in political science, and like many young voters, she sides with her parents’ political views.
She said most of the people she knows who voted for Harris did so to vote against Donald Trump. She thinks Harris’ quick rise to the Democratic ticket, without a traditional primary, is part of why many young voters were less engaged.
That idea rang true to Trump voter, Ashley Kovitz, a senior at Virginia Tech, and Chair for the university’s Young Republicans organization.
“When Harris was automatically selected as the candidate, I know a lot of people were really kind of turned off by that,” Kovitz said.
To be clear, Kovitz said nothing could have swayed her to vote for Harris, even though she wished there could be a woman president, and even though she actually is turned off by Trump’s character. She started out in high school identifying as a liberal, but watching her father be laid off, then struggle to find another job, the economic issues pushed her to the right. She also fiercely agrees with Trump’s immigration policies.
Historically, younger voters tend to vote more liberal, but exit polls by CNN suggest they shifted more to the right this election. It’s still too early to determine exactly how young people voted, and how many turned out for the election because so many students registered the day of the election. According to the Montgomery County registrar, 99 percent of all provisional ballots in that county are students.
