Super Tuesday

Super Tuesday

Taylor Josephs, Commentary Editor

As many of you know, Super Tuesday is coming up this week. What a lot of students don’t understand, however, is what this entails for the eventual presidential election. Super Tuesday can earn a presidential candidate more delegates than any other primary date — delegates which are critical to their party’s nomination for president. If a candidate fails to win the primaries in enough states on Super Tuesday, their chance at becoming president is far slimmer. Even if you know these facts, many of you are still likely wondering “why should us students care about this day?”

Many seniors and even some juniors at our school will be able to vote in the upcoming Minnesota caucus this Tuesday (if they are turning 18 before the presidential election on November 8th). Even if you aren’t eligible to vote in Tuesday’s caucus, it’s still important to remain involved in politics. Many kids make the mistake of neglecting to learn about politics and instead rely on what their parents tell them. I’m not implying that what your parents tell you about politics is wrong, necessarily, but what is wrong is allowing somebody to shape your opinions for you. Even if they did raise you, your values might differ far from your parents’ and you may not even know what they are yet! To anyone who has not taken the time to find out which candidate they side the most with, please do so because your opinion will eventually influence the outcome of future elections.

If you are eligible to vote on Tuesday, please do! It may seem like voting in the caucuses won’t make a difference, for your vote is simply one of millions. However, by being engaged in politics and elections, you may influence your peers to do so as well. By mobilizing larger groups of young people to vote, our voices are heard and responded to on a much grander scale. If teenagers sit back and let the adults do the voting, our values will not be represented and we may be stuck with a president with values we do not agree with when we enter young adulthood. If you care at all about how your country is run, or wish to change the direction of America, I strongly encourage you to research the 2016 presidential candidates and to cast your vote on Super Tuesday.