First-time voters who convened at an election party at Tufts University Tuesday night are acutely aware of the impact the 2024 election will have on their future.
Hundreds of students milled around the Joyce Cummings Center in Medford as they watched the results roll in. They played games, enjoyed food, got some free swag and even pet two comfort dogs to ease their fried nerves.
Students said talk of the election was inescapable on campus.
Zachary Zinman, president of Tufts Democrats, said it was a “weird” first election to be voting in considering the dynamic election cycle. But he recognized the outcome of the presidential contest between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris wouldmean a lot for issues such as the economy, abortion access and the environment.
“We’re going to see the direct effects of all these policies that are going to be implemented in the near future,” Zinman said.
“This is a very meaningful election because there’s a lot on the line in this election,” said Leah Scoppa, an 18-year- old Democrat and Tufts student from Connecticut. “There’s a lot of rights personally for me as a woman.”
She said a Trump victory would be “really scary.”
Ethan Putlack is hoping for a Trump win.
The 21-year-old president of Tufts Republicans said it’s time for a change. “We had four years of a Democratic administration, I would rather not see another four years.”
Putlack also said he’s hopeful to see more Republicans in Congress to minimize frequent close votes. He said, ”Bending to the whim of one or two people isn’t the best.”
In a divided country, the young voters said there are ways to overcome differences following the election.
“The best we can do is to kind of try to reconcile at a human level what people are thinking about,” said Kunal Botla, 19, of Lexington, who was featured in GBH News’ Politics IRL.
Lauren Baker, an 18-year-old Tufts student from Texas, advised against trying to change a friend’s mind.
“If they’re a good person, it’s still not worth losing that friendship. If you like them as a person, have respectful conversations and move on,” Baker said.
The youth vote is hugely significant in this race, the students said.
Joao Ribiero, a 22-year-old from Danvers and president of Tufts Federalist Society, said young voters are seeing the government as ineffective, and they’re yearning for more government intervention.
The youth vote will show the trajectory of where the country is going, said Maddie, a Tufts alumni from Hingham who is supporting Harris despite being a Republican.
“The Gen Z and Millennial vote right now is going to be a forecast of what we want 10 years from now,” Maddie said, “and what we will be working towards.”
