The Road to the White House
Throughout 2016, one of the biggest points of debate at the STEM School and around the country have been the presidential primaries. Students around the school have been wearing shirts supporting politicians ranging from Senator Bernie Sanders to Businessman Donald Trump. The presidential race is important as it truly has a huge impact on all of our lives, and it is great to see the number of STEM students not only showing their support, but having really concrete discussions about the future of our country.
On the Democratic side, the race for the White House is getting increasingly close between former Senator (D-NY) and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and current Senator Bernie Sanders (D-Ind-VT). Secretary Clinton is running on her strong record through her almost 20 years of public service, working on breaking down the barriers holding people back. Senator Bernie Sanders is running on a campaign focused on Economic Inequality, and has tapped into a before unseen enthusiasm amongst young people with his powerful message. Secretary Clinton has a large lead in the delegates, around 250—a lead larger than President Obama’s against Hillary Clinton in the 2008 primaries. Secretary Clinton is currently polling better in Pennsylvania and some upcoming states, and also has a larger firewall of superdelegates—elected democratic party officials who get a vote in the convention—that she believes will help her capture the Democratic nomination. On the other side, Senator Sanders is coming off of an eight-win streak that has seen him show huge margins, leading to his argument that momentum of the campaign is his, and will therefore tip the scales toward him. Regardless of one’s political views, it is good to see a race tightening, as it allows us to see how the candidate responds under pressure, crucial to becoming a good president.
On the Republican side, the race for the White House has been unprecedented this cycle. In something not seen in a generation—since 1976—the Republican party seems to be headed to a contested convention. With a field that started with 17 candidates, including powerful Republican figures such as former Governor Jeb Bush (R-FL) and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fl), the current Republican race only has three candidates remaining. This large amount of candidates has prevented any candidate from being on track to getting 50% of the delegates—required for the nomination—leading to a fight on the convention floor in Cleveland, where the delegates, who are party activists, choose the next Republican presidential candidate. The current front runner is Businessman Donald Trump (R-NY) who is on track to capture around 45 % of the vote overall through a strong outsider campaign that has emphasized the need for a businessman to reform Washington. In second place is Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), who has emphasized not only an outsider quality as a conservative firebrand, but also his ability to unify his party after some of Donald Trump’s controversial comments. In a distant third place is Governor John Kasich (R-OH), who has said that as the only candidate with the polls showing he can beat Hillary Clinton, he should become the nominee at a contested convention. The Republican race has been very exciting as it has brought together a diverse group of candidates that have given voters a wide range of choices.
We at the DRSS Newsroom are excited to continue covering this election cycle throughout this year, and hope to continue raising awareness about the political process at the STEM school.
