Voices of UWM Voters: A Campus Divided

Gov. Scott Walker won the governor’s race on Nov. 4, but how did UW-Milwaukee students vote? A team of student journalists  interviewed random UWM students to find out the answer.

What they found was a campus divided, mirroring the state’s political divide, despite stereotypes that university students are a monolithic voting group. Some students said they voted for Walker. Some students said they voted for his challenger, Mary Burke. They were more united in the issues they cared about, though, with many citing tuition costs, education, and the economy as driving factors (fewer mentioned social issues, but a few did, such as the environment and women’s issues).

A smattering of students said they didn’t vote, were confused about where or how to register, or were too disenchanted with the political process or candidates to do so at all. One student said she voted because her grandmother wanted her to; another student wrote in himself (but for another position, not governor). Here’s what the student journalists found:

Motivated by county workers: Kevin Speet, interviewed by Tanner Bakala

Speet is an Information Science Technology major at UWM. He voted for Mary Burke in the governor’s election, because she’s Democratic, and he doesn’t much care for “the other guy.”

“The other guy” being Scott Walker.

“I think the issue that motivated me the most was people’s employment rights that work for the county, and people had to retire early thanks to things Walker was doing,” said Speet.

When asked if he’s voted before, Speet replied, “Yes. Always, since the age of 18, which was a long time ago.”

Walker’s neighbor Carolina Svedson, interviewed by Brooke Dowden

After experiencing life in the corporate world, Carolina Svedson is a returning UW- Milwaukee visual arts major and neighbor to Gov. Scott Walker. She voted for Mary Burke Tuesday for the 2014 Wisconsin General Election.

Wisconsin’s education system and creating jobs were two important topics to Svedson. Many of Svedson’s Democratic opinions stemmed from having a mom teach in the Milwaukee Public School District.

As a student, Svedson was concerned about the job market in Wisconsin and believes that Burke would be the one to produce jobs.

“I think that Mary Burke is the candidate that has shown her, first of all, female leadership through personal enterprise, and creating jobs in the state,” Svedson said.

Tuition freeze and hunting: Austin Mader, interviewed by John Gingrass

Austin Mader, a junior at UWM, was excited for this year’s election. He decided to vote for Scott Walker.

“First off, I am a fiscal conservative, and second off, I am a big hunter, and he stands with the Second Amendment, so I am going to vote for him,” said Mader.

He was also moved by Walker’s support for a tuition freeze.

“The tuition freeze is obviously huge in my life. Obviously being a college student, we pay tens of thousands of dollars as it is so saving money is nice and really helpful for us. I have voted before, I voted in the presidential election, and I’ve also voted in the last local elections.”

Mader said he believed “it’s my civic duty to vote. I’m a very strong conservative, so I feel as though me voting and trying to get out the vote is very important to my way of life and success.”

Job Growth: Tyler Bundies, interviewed by Graham Kilmer

Tyler Bundies, Chair of the College Republicans, spoke at length about recent job growth to explain his support for Scott Walker. He spoke about how this gives him comfort when thinking about post-graduation job prospects.

“I’m a huge supporter of the tuition freeze,” said Bundies.

He added that the tuition freeze gives him a sense of security and helps him budget for his college expenses. He also believes the tuition freeze is good for the school and the taxpayers.

“It forces universities to take a good hard look at their budgets,” said Bundies.

Environment and public education: Anna Miller, interviewed by Helen Koth

Nineteen year old Pre-med student Anna Miller planned to vote for Democratic candidate Mary Burke.

Miller said that she believed that Burke was a bit more focused on women’s rights, and that Walker wasn’t as knowledgeable about environmental issues. “He’s still convinced that climate change is not at all impacted by the pollution that we have. When asked that questions, he actually said ‘No’, he doesn’t think so,” Miller noted, adding, “That was kind of baffling to me.”

Miller revealed that it was more that she voted against Walker than for Burke. “The lesser of the two evils,” she put it.

When Miller walked into the Riverside High School voting district, she was significantly fueled by the issue of public education also. “I was in high school when he (Walker) made the cuts to the public system of education, and I felt it directly in my school. I don’t think my school proportioned the cuts where they should have,” Miller said. “Most of my class sizes were around 40 students. It was a direct impact of the decisions that he made politically. It was remarkable and disappointing.”

Miller was a first-time voter this November, which she says was very exciting. “This is the first time I was eligible to vote for a major race.” She notes that the campus registration staff made it easier for her to vote.

Exercising the right to vote: Sierra Wallach, interviewed by Analiese Pruni

UWM Freshman Sierra Wallach gave her thoughts on the election presence on campus. “I think midterm elections are notorious for not having a strong turnout for younger voters. So I think just for future reference for candidates, it would be important to make their presence more on college campuses, get their viewpoints out there so people really have a clear idea of what they’re trying to advocate for.”

She believes that students are the generation next up to control this country, so they need to take part in the policies of this country by exercising their voting rights. “I think it is important for younger voters to exercise their right as a citizen to vote, because I mean, we are the people who are going to be growing up in the world and have to make our own policies and really get an understanding, to obviously live in a good country and make sure everything is run as smooth and as equally as possible.”

As to who she hopes will win, “I’m hoping that Burke wins, I think she’s done a good job of trying to get us to know her a little more, because I think she kind of came out of nowhere. If people do their research, I think they can find out more about candidates than political ads that are, you know, notorious for being slander.”

Concerned about taxes: Taylor Kaat, interviewed by Alexander Shun

Taylor Kaat, a junior and kinesiology major, believes very strongly in the voting system and views it as being of “big importance to all citizens of the country.” Kaat said that he votes every two years, especially since there are some people who don’t get the right to vote.

When asked about the importance of student voting, Kaat said that student voting is very important because students are going to continue to live in this state and this country beyond graduation so it definitely affects the students. Kaat also said that student voting was important because, as a young group of people, voting can have a profound impact on their future.

Kaat said that taxes and the state budget were of highest importance to him. Kaat said he would be monitoring those issues closely and watching how this election shapes where Wisconsin goes in the future, based on where it has been in the past.

Getting out the student vote: Solana Patterson Ramos, interviewed by Evan Vogel

UW-Milwaukee’s Student Union was alive with students and voting groups from all parties on Election Day. One group, the American Civil Liberties Union Student Alliance or ACLUSA, a non-partisan group, was there trying to get a greater student voter turnout.

President Solana Patterson Ramos wanted students to know how important their vote is. She said it is important that students understand that tuition and campus life are strongly influenced by governors.

Ramos said that students are happy with this past year’s tuition freeze, but fail to realize its negative impact on the university as an organization. She feels that too many students don’t know what is going on when it comes to the election and which issues the candidates are focusing on. This lack of knowledge makes students an easy target for campaigners and uneducated students are more likely to give their vote to someone for no reason at all. Ramos thinks the student body has more influence on politicians than students realize.

The newspaper editor: Jordyn Noennig, interviewed by McAllister Writt

Jordyn Noennig, Editor-in-Chief of the UWM Post and UWM journalism and political science major, is a second-time voter going into the 2014 fall primary elections. Noennig voted last in Wisconsin’s largely overlooked spring elections; she’s an avid media consumer and strong proponent of the democratic process.

The 19-year-old descends from a long line of business entrepreneurs; two of her uncles are businessmen, while her father started his own transportation and security business – a “classic Republican family” as she puts it.

“Tomorrow I am voting for Scott Walker; he has done things that have made a lot of controversy, but I’m happy that he has stood by them,” said Noennig, “I think it would also be jarring to change governors at this point for businesses. Walker didn’t have a lot of time to pull in businesses with the reelection in 2012.”

As Editor-in-Chief of the UWM Post, a student-run campus news source, her political views have largely been left on the back burner this election season. Under her command, the Post has published articles including in-depth candidate analysis, the attorney general race, polling locations, referendums, and profiles spotlighting UWM’s College Democrats and Republicans.

Noennig got to attend Democratic candidate Mary Burke and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren’s joint campaign rally in mid-October.

“I’m happy I got to hear what Mary Burke had to say. She had some good ideas for college kids; I can see why people would vote for her,” said Noennig.

“I think the media is really important to the political process for being the scorekeeper, the mediator, or even the spy,” said Noennig. “You want to make sure your politicians are legitimate; that everything they are saying is truthful and honest. I think it is important to stay unbiased.”

Fiscal policies and tuition freezes: Thomas Doherty, interviewed by Ryan Artmann

Thomas Doherty, 19, said he was voting for Scott Walker in this election. He explained a couple of reasons to back up his vote.

First, he mentioned that he likes Walker’s fiscal policies, and that Walker’s taken Wisconsin from a billion-dollar deficit to a multi-million dollar surplus. He also talked about how Walker is planning on freezing UWM tuition again like he did in his first term.

Doherty ended the interview by explaining why voting is so important. He explained that every American has a right to have his or her voice heard.

Student Association leader: John Thornton, interviewed by Sean Cornell

“Scott Walker supports the middle class, supports job creation, supports lowering taxes, so I support Scott Walker,” said John Thornton, treasurer for the Student Association.

Although Thornton supports Walker on his state-wide economic policies, he wasn’t sold on the tuition freeze supported by Walker.

“I will say that Scott Walker’s tuition freeze was a little ‘willy-nilly,’” said Thornton. “It did not take into account all the hazards it could create for the UW school system.”

Getting the economy back on track: Ryan Connell, interviewed by Keersi Edwards

Ryan Connell, 21, a senior at UWM majoring in Advertising and Public Relations, said he intended to vote for Walker.

He said he feels “like it is everyone’s responsibility to vote when you are of the legal age to use your rights.”

His main issue in deciding to choose Walker was the “economy and getting it back on track; I am not really studied up on the rest of the issues in the debate but that is one that I think is most important to not only me but most of the people that are voting.”

He added that he is a Republican, as is his family. He had not registered to vote yet in part because he wasn’t sure where to go to vote. “I know there are resources to find out, but I feel like it could be more accessible. I just think it is a very important election for the future of Wisconsin and the economy.”

Opportunity for small businesses: Stephanie Kosmeder, interviewed by Katie Eggers

Stephanie Kosmeder is a senior studying political science at the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee. She is a Republican and chose to vote in the election on Nov. 4. Kosmeder votes in nearly every election.

Kosmeder’s main concern in this election was the opportunity for small businesses to continue to grow and expand. She believes that Scott Walker was the right choice to help small businesses and their owners.

Kosmeder chooses to vote because it is her right. She feels that it is important to vote because she is not only helping to make choices for herself, but also for her child.

Proudly wearing “I Voted” stickers: Lloyd Brown and Katherine Blair, interviewed by Zoe-Tyler Greene

Both 20-year-old junior Lloyd Brown and 29-year-old senior Katherine Blair were wearing “I voted” stickers proudly on their jackets.

Lloyd said he had voted for Mary Burke and joked, “It was really a tossup.” He voted for Burke because he felt there was needed change in Madison.

Blair was a little more hesitant about revealing her voting choice but stressed it was important to vote because students, who are the future, will be inheriting this country.

She said a lot of young people do not get out and vote, which is a real shame. Blair also stressed how she felt it was so important for women to vote as they didn’t have this right for a long time.

Meteorology major: Peter Napierala, interviewed by Mike Holloway

Peter Napierala is a Metereology major at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Napierala voted for Scott Walker in Wisconsin’s 2014 governor’s race. He also voted for Walker in the previous race, as well as during the recall.

“He committed to what he actually said he was going to do, whether people liked it or not; the majority voted for him, and when he won, he stuck to what he said, and I personally haven’t had too big of a problem with his set of goals,” said Napierala.

Two of the priorities that Napierala kept in mind when deciding who to vote for were the overall budget and which of the candidates could open up more job opportunities. Napierala believes that everyone should do their part when it comes to voting. “Everyone should vote as a civic duty and to express your opinion,” said Napierala. “If you back a candidate’s beliefs, you should vote for him or her, in order to improve his or her chance of winning.”

Wrote in himself: Robert Penner, interviewed by Barry Keefe

UWM student Robert Penner’s reasons for voting in 2014 are pretty indicative of just how polarizing a figure Gov. Scott Walker has become.

“It was kind of a difficult decision to even vote this time around because I see both the Republican and Democratic parties as both very detrimental to the progress of the state of Wisconsin,” said Penner. “But at this point voting for Mary Burke was like voting for the lesser of two evils for me.”

Penner dislikes Scott Walker in part because his parents are both public employees, and with the passing of Act 10, their wages and benefits were both cut, leaving Penner without health insurance.

“If I were to get in an accident or get sick or something I would ring up a huge medical bill,” said Penner. “Things have been made difficult for me and for a lot of people because of [Walker’s] policies so I disagree with everything that he stands for wholeheartedly.”

Again, it is important to note that Penner sees little to be optimistic about with Mary Burke. He says she’s not going to make changes to the policies that affect the state the most, including those related to higher education. Penner also doesn’t believe Mary Burke will win the election.

This pessimism in regards to both the Democratic and Republican parties can be seen in Penner’s third party choices. In the race for the 19th District State Assembly seat, Penner voted for Joe Kleine from the Pirate Party, and for State Treasurer, Penner wrote in himself.

“It was an unopposed ticket, and I was just like whatever I’ll just write my name in there because you know why not? It’s more of a statement than anything else because I’m probably not qualified to be treasurer, but it just goes to show my disillusionment with all things Democrats and Republicans.”

Students in Sandburg interviewed by Madeline Power-Luetscher

Some students voted at the Sandburg residence hall. One of those was Karli Wolke, who said she voted for Burke solely because her grandma told her to. She also said she was really confused about the voting process so she just voted Democratic for everything, and also voted for the minimum wage to raise because she thought that seemed “cool.”

She said she has no interest in politics and wasn’t keeping up with either candidates, but her grandma really wanted her to vote for Burke so she did.

This is Maura Rich’s second time voting, and she votes on issues that relate directly to her, like job growth. She said she voted for Walker because she’s a Republican and likes his general, “viewpoints.” She said she doesn’t really know anything about politics but knows she’s going to vote for Walker.

Marley Uran said she might not be able to vote because she went to the wrong polls. She lives in Riverview, and therefore couldn’t vote at Sandburg, but doesn’t have a ride back to Riverview before the polls close. She said if she does vote, she would vote Democratic because issues like abortion and marriage equality are important to her. She also said she just turned 18, so this is her first election.

Silas Petrie said he’s voting for Walker, not because he’s strictly Republican but because of the tuition freeze and they’re both Eagle Scouts, and he’s met him a few times and he seems like “a good guy.” He likes the tax policies of Walker and how, during the recall, Walker stayed true to his viewpoints and didn’t sympathize with the liberal side at all.

This is Lea Parker’s first election ,and she voted for Walker because of the tuition freeze and, “money is tight.” She didn’t vote for Burke because she didn’t have a tuition freeze.

Unsure where to register: Marissa Paulson, interviewed by Samantha Tripp

Marissa Paulson, 20, was one of many students who didn’t know they could register to vote where they were living up to the day of the election.

“I have a very complicated situation where I’m not from this area so I don’t know if I can vote. I would like to. I just need to further look into it and see if I can vote, but if I can then yes, absolutely I will vote today. The thing is I don’t know much about who is running.”

She said she might vote for Walker. “Our state hasn’t completely gone down the hole.” But she wasn’t sure. She said she was concerned about education.

The new citizen: Anurag Das, interviewed by Stevan Stojanovic

UWM Student Anurag Das recently became a citizen to the United States over the summer and showed up to vote on Election Day 2014. He says he intends on voting for Mary Burke.

“Well, Walker has been governor for a while, and I don’t really like the campaigns and all the things he’s done right now. Like for school and cutting the taxes and everything and how tuition has gone up,” said Das. “So, that’s why I don’t really want to vote for him, and… so, that’s why I am voting for Burke.”

He also talked about how it feels voting for the first time.

“Somewhat excited, I guess… Like, right now, as I said, I haven’t done much research, but if I see it has some kind of impact next time, when I vote, I want to have more research done so I know what I am voting for,” Das said. “So, right now it’s not that personal, but maybe next time it will be.”

“Your Vote is Your Voice”: James Wilbur and Celina Gabriel, interviewed by Emily Topczewski

“WOOO! SCOTT WALKER! FOUR MORE YEARS!” James Wilbur, a first-year student at UW-Milwaukee yelled. Wilbur is new to campus but has been voting in elections for more than a decade. He voted for Walker Tuesday.

“There’s this ideology in college life that Democrats are more supportive of college students, and they’re more socially open,” he said, “but I don’t think that really reflects the ideology and the value base of the Republican Party. We’re seeing massive change in the way that they view things.”

He says there’s a growing number of Republicans standing up for social issues, like gay marriage and immigration. For this shift to move forward, Wilbur says people need to stray from party lines and stereotypes.

While Walker might not be the most innovative with his platforms on these social issues, the incumbent governor earned Wilbur’s vote because of his commitment to his own word.

“What is key to realize here is that even though we think that politics can be very partisan,” he said, “that Governor Walker has stood by everything he said and he has made every effort to follow through on all of his campaign promises.”

He says that in the first four years, Walker did an exceptional job of making that happen – and that we should give him that credit.

But Celine Gabriel, a sophomore at UWM, says the buzz around Walker’s potential run for president in 2016 was one reason that swayed her vote the other way.

“I think your governor should be able to say, ‘yeah, I’m going to stay here,’” Gabriel said. “I didn’t like that he couldn’t say that.”

She voted for Walker’s challenger, Democratic candidate Mary Burke, and says it’s pretty cool to get a say in how government is run.

“Voting is awesome,” Gabriel said. “There’s no other word to describe it.”

When looking at all four candidates, she says Walker and Burke seemed on an equal playing field. But, Walker’s challenger did pull ahead for her vote.

“Out of all the candidates, she seemed the most level headed,” Gabriel said. “Compared to Scott Walker, she seemed like she would bring a lot more to the table for Wisconsin.”

Public Transportation was one of the largest issues that pulled her to the polls.

“It not only affects how people get around,” she said, “which is really important because a lot of people don’t have cars, but it also affects people who do have cars who use public transit to get to places quicker or without spending as much money.”

Party lines aside, both Gabriel and Wilbur can agree that voting is an opportunity everyone should take.

“We need to be active in civic engagement,” Wilbur said. “Voting is an essential duty of every person. Without voting, these people are going to get elected that don’t reflect the people.”

“Your vote is your voice,” Gabriel said, “and I wanted to use my voice.”

Disappointed but motivated: Austin Kieler, interviewed by Eliana Moreno

Austin Kieler, the chair of UWM’s College Democrats, is left feeling displeased with the outcome of Tuesday’s election. Kieler said he values the same things Mary Burke does, which made her the best candidate for him. His position on hot button issues is reflected in Burke’s policies.

He is skeptical about what is to come for our state as a result of Walker’s reelection. Kieler feels that Burke’s policies would benefit the state more than Walker’s. Unfortunately, in his eyes, students are the ones who are going to be negatively affected throughout the next four years.

However, Kieler remains optimistic. He has high hopes for the future and thinks that it’s time to take action now. Despite the direction the state will be headed in for the next four years, Kieler encourages students to continue to fight for their values. He said the time is now for Democrats to keep moving forward in order to be successful in 2016.

Taxes and spending: Matt Sama, interviewed by Thomas Kelly

Matt Sama, a student majoring in marketing here at UWM, said, “absolutely I intend to vote in this race, and I unequivocally am going to be voting for Scott Walker. The reason being that he holds true to what he says he’s going to do and follows through with it. He comes in on a platform of small government, less taxes, less regulation, more freedom and prosperity for all of us.”

Sama said he was most interested in three issues: Government spending, taxation, and the economy. “When the government spends more money and takes more money from you or me, it uses that to grow the size of government and therefore the economy shrinks.”

His first election was in 2010 when he also voted for Walker. “To turn all that back now because a bunch of special interests would be a tragedy,” he said.

Didn’t vote: Jake Zdrojewski, interviewed by Joe Halley

Students were proudly wearing their “I Voted” stickers around Milwaukee’s campus today as the governor’s race was underway. Everyone except Jake Zdrojewski, a UWM senior, who was confused on the change of registration rules.

“They eliminated same day registration, and I was not aware of that until today,” Zdrojewski said.

Zdrojewski has voted before and said he would have voted in today’s race if he was aware of the change and plans on voting in every election from here on out.

Al Iblahim and Connor Hetzel, interviewed by DaMonique Harris

UWM student Al Iblahim didn’t vote, but for a very good reason. His reason for not voting is because this state isn’t his primary residence. Iblahim is from Saudi Arabia and has been here for about a year. He didn’t vote because he doesn’t know how the system works in America, nor does he know anything about the candidates that are running.

Connor Hetzel knows how voting works in Wisconsin, but he still didn’t vote. He feels that the people in politics are biased, and none of the candidates’ plans was appealing to him. He also feels that the outcome will not affect him.

Matt Michels, interviewed by Gretchen Schmook

While many college students are open about their political stances, a good portion do not affiliate with politics at all. UWM junior Matt Michels is a part of that group and did not vote in the election Tuesday.

“I didn’t really know much about either candidate or any of their policies. If you aren’t informed, nor do you believe in what they’re trying to enact, then I don’t think it’s your duty to identify with that party or vote for them if you don’t want what they’re trying to enact.”