With the election right around the corner, how does the student body feel about this year’s presidential candidates? We surveyed approximately 100 students to find out.

Most students were hesitant to reveal who they were supporting. Some rolled their eyes and sighed in disgust over the “lesser of two evils” decision they had to make.

One group of students were adamant in their support of Trump, noting that, because their families supported the Republican Party, they felt a certain responsibility to side with the Republican candidate. On the other hand, students who supported Clinton seemed hesitant to advocate for her due to her private email server controversy.

More surprising, however, were the number of students who were not interested in voting in this year’s election at all.

Of the 102 students we surveyed, 19 favored Trump, 26 supported Clinton, 3 were undecided, and 2 were voting for a third party. And then there were the nonvoters: whopping 34 of them.  

The reason for so many students not voting? Perhaps, because, according to Kyle, a senior, “It’s crazy how the political process has brought these two unqualified candidates together.” Or, maybe, according to Cristina, also a senior, “It’s a hot mess. It’s very petty.”

Whatever the reason, it seems that the majority of students who commented on this year’s election described it as a “joke.” As Jonathan, a junior, put it, “With a lot of things going on, [the election] is just becoming its own reality TV show.” Emily, a senior, concurred: “It’s pitiful. I’m a little unimpressed with what the country has to offer.” 

There may be some truth to what this small sample of comments provided: Many students are not sure whom to vote for because of the hot-topic media scandals surrounding Trump and Clinton. A passing comment by Tamara, a junior, seemed to best sum of the sentiment: “It’s really about a lesser of two evils.”