As the 2024 presidential election marked by fierce division rapidly approaches, Poly students are attuned to the political stakes of this election even though most are not old enough to vote.

Some Poly students possess strong opinions on the battle between the Republican party ticket, former president Donald Trump and Ohio Senator JD Vance, and the Democratic candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. In a survey conducted by the Paw Print, 57 students in grades 9-12 shared their opinions on the election, including their perceptions of the candidates and prominent issues of concern. In order to invite authentic responses, the survey allowed students to respond anonymously.

When asked whom they would vote for president, Harris emerged as the favorite with 45 votes, Trump and Green Party candidate Jill Stein tied for second with five votes each, and Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver trailed in last with two votes.

A student favoring the Harris/Walz ticket shared, “I’ve listened to rallies on both major party sides, watched the presidential and VP debates — ultimately, the choice I made reflected my agreement with Harris’ points and my faith in her competency as president.”

In addition to submitting a hypothetical vote for their candidates, the survey prompted students to rank their own political awareness on the election on a scale of one to five as well as their views on the influence of the youth community on the election. Most Poly students believed their own political awareness landed from four to five. However, the majority of the respondents believed that the youth community can make little to no difference in the approaching election.

One respondent shared, “Older people try to make the youth think that they really matter in politics, when they really don’t.”

Another wrote, “We can’t vote, and we live in a world controlled by adults. Our opinion is not very important.”

Many student respondents expressed their exasperation with a world that does not actively attempt to include non-voters in the election process.

The survey also asked students to rank eight key issues that they believe should take center stage in the election: healthcare, the economy, reproductive rights, gun control, criminal justice reform, immigration, education and climate change. Healthcare and reproductive rights emerged as the most important issues among the respondents.

A student who ranked reproductive rights as most important shared, “Reproductive rights seem at a tipping point in American politics right now, and I believe it’s particularly pertinent for politicians to address what they would usher in our current post-Roe era.”

In an Upper School survey taken in 2023 by more than 30 members of the Class of 2023, students shared that the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 significantly influenced where they had applied to college. While social media plays a dominant role in how students receive their information, news websites like CNN and the New York Times, as well as information from family emerged ahead of social media.

Despite their inability to vote yet, Poly students value staying informed on the key issues that may be decided by this historic election.