By Anika Sapra
2020 has been a tumultuous year, to say the least. A special focus this year, however, was the presidential election. And now that many seniors at Great Valley are now eligible to vote, we talked to seniors Chris Credden and Sukriti Sharma about voting in the 2020 election.
What is motivating you to come out and vote?
Chris: I have been interested in political issues for quite a while now, and I was excited that I would be able to vote in an election since I turned 18 in September. It’s especially more motivating when it’s the year of a presidential election! This year, though, I think that voting is very important to remove our current president. I don’t like him at all, especially since he refused to unite us as a country and only sowed division. Just look at how the COVID-19 response turned out! It was abysmal.
Sukriti: I think one of the things that people really underestimate about Gen Z is the power of our vote. I want to vote mainly because of such pressing issues that are happening in our country right now and I want to do my job as a citizen to help fix them.
How do you plan to vote?
Chris: I had planned to vote by mail (naked ballot), but my mom and I ended up voting early at a voting center. We had been waiting for our ballots for almost a month, so we decided to get them nullified and vote there instead.
Sukriti: I plan to vote by mail. However, I am going to a polling booth to volunteer as a poll worker!
What impact do you feel your vote will have?
Chris: I think this is a tricky question to answer. In terms of whether or not certain candidates will win, I think my vote will play a significant role, especially since our state is such a battleground for this year’s election. In terms of what I want for our country, I don’t think it will do much. I’m not a fan of Joe Biden because I don’t believe he is progressive enough for our country’s greater good. For now, his ideals are going to take a back seat for me as I am voting more to have Trump out rather than for a Biden presidency.
Sukriti: I believe that my vote will have a great impact, especially considering that Pennsylvania is a swing state.
Did you learn about voting in school or did you learn about the whole process through the news, social media, family, or others?
Chris: I didn’t really learn about voting in school, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I got most of my information about voting from my mom and from the internet, both telling me about how and where I should vote.
Sukriti: A lot of my teachers this year have been encouraging eligible students to vote which I really like! However, I learned about voting primarily through government websites and social media to ensure that my mail-in ballot will be valid.