The midterm elections will be on Nov. 8. Voters will have the opportunity to cast their ballot for local, state and federal seats.
As election day approaches, reporters from the Mesquite reached out to U.S. House candidates to get insight on their campaigns, about employment opportunities for college graduates, initiatives they will bring to their districts and how they plan to facilitate higher education for those in financial need.
Dr. Sarah Kupcho, senior lecturer and program coordinator of the political science program at Texas A&M University-San Antonio, told The Mesquite the importance of voting and other topics related to the election.
Kupcho said midterm elections are the public’s chance to voice their opinions and give feedback to the government on how they are doing thus far.
“I think all elections are important, but, in particular, we have a divided government that is extremely polarized,” Kupcho said. “There is a lot of fundamental issues that are being brought forth that we need to bring our attention to — things like immigration policy; universal health care or health care in general; housing policies; environmental policies, all of these; Roe v. Wade. Those are reasons why we need to put more emphasis on this election.”
Voter turnout is typically much higher for presidential candidates, but change ultimately can be done through the seats of Congress.
“As we know, Congress is a lawmaking body, so if you don’t like something that is going on in government, for example, if you’re in favor of free college … that’s not necessarily something that can be unilaterally implemented by the president; those are things that would have to go through Congress,” Kupcho said.
To the students who may feel that their vote may not count or are considering not voting, Kupcho puts things into perspective:
“The only vote that doesn’t count, or is insignificant, is the one that is not cast.”
