This blog will cover Dr. Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan's ROAD to the WHITE HOUSE 2020 class (that will study the history and politics of U.S. presidential campaigns). She and her students will travel to New Hampshire for an intensive 10-day internship leading up to the first-in-the-nation primary.
Last week,
29 USF students left for a 10-day trip to New Hampshire to assist in
presidential primary campaign efforts through the university’s “Road to
the White House” class.
New Hampshire’s primary is on Feb. 11.
The course only comes around every four years, during the presidential primaries.
The class is worth six credits. The New Hampshire trip counts as
three internship credits, while the majority of the semester is spent
working on seminar credits.
From left: Mahree Medero, Maria Starr and Nicholas Pasierb are the only students campaigning for the Republican party. Courtesy of Nicholas Pasierb
For the internship portion, the students are divided among eight
campaigns, including former Vice President Joe Biden; Pete Buttigieg,
former Democratic mayor of South Bend, Ind.; Sen. Amy Klobuchar,
D-Minn.; Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt.; President Donald Trump; Sen.
Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; Andrew Yang; and the New Hampshire GOP.
During their trip, the students went to debates, met candidates and spoke to potential voters.
The following excerpts are from blog posts the students have written throughout their trip. Rebecca Nero, Elizabeth Warren campaign Feb. 6
This was the first day on our campaigns and it was super exciting!!!!
We got to meet our campaign supervisors and they were all nice. We were
able to canvas and phone bank to talk to the voters. We are mostly
targeting all of the undecided voters, something I observed is many
people were between Warren and Sanders. Interesting. Overall, a great
day, love this journey for me. Peyton Johnson, Bernie Sanders campaign Feb. 6
I am thrilled to announce that in combination with a tour of the
non-heated New Hampshire Republican Party, we got to see Senator Bernie
Sanders on Tuesday(…) He talked about everything from prison reform to
Medicare for All. I began to cry during his discussion about Medicare
for All. I need a president who will take care of not only my medical
bills, but my pre-existing condition(…) I am beyond proud to be a
Sanders supporter. Tuesday was the first time I felt seen in this
campaign. The first time I felt someone was looking out for me as an
American. Nothing is more American than creating the freedom to live
happily. Nicholas Pasierb, President Donald Trump campaign Feb. 4
Democratic candidate and philanthropist Tom Steyer poses with students. Courtesy of Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan
There are only three of us interning for President Trump, or for the
Republican party for that matter, out of the 29 of us so I was sensing
some contempt but I figured that was part of politics and was of no big
concern. We were introduced to our boss, who is only 23, one year older
than me, but it’s okay because he is amazing and a true professional.
Since President Trump is looking pretty much like the Republican
nominee, we did not have to hit the ground running(…) After lunch, we
tried to do some phone banking and we quickly discovered that it is not
as easy as it seems(…) We made over 200 calls each, which feels like a
big number(…) After we left, we headed to a restaurant to watch the
democratic returns come in for the Iowa caucus. However, after about 3
hours there, we left. Guess they didn’t call anything that night which
is a shame because many of my classmates stayed up till almost 2 a.m.
from what I have heard.
Not me… I was definitely asleep. Fallia Gregory, Joe Biden campaign Feb. 1
I am so excited for this amazing opportunity to intern for
Presidential hopeful Joe Biden! I chose him based on his countless years
of working for us, the middle class, women, children, students, workers
and tackles the tough issues such as immigration, healthcare and
college affordability(…) This course will introduce me to Presidential
campaigns and all that goes into making it all happen. There will be
late nights, sleepless nights, but all of that is in order to fight for
what you believe in to make the world a better place for all. Having
worked on campaigns previously, I know some of the hard work that goes
into them but nothing is quite like a Presidential campaign! Beyond
honored for this opportunity and to represent USF St. Petersburg! Go
Bulls! Halley Hobbs, Pete Buttigieg campaign Feb. 6
Tuesday morning, we visited the State House in Concord, New
Hampshire. We had a tour of that building then went to the Republican
headquarters(…) We also went canvassing in Bedford, New Hampshire.
Tuesday night, we went to Pete’s town hall in Concord. We helped check
people into the venue, then I heard him speak for the very first time.
Even though I was right next to him there were so many people I wasn’t
able to shake his hand, but just being a foot away from him made me
happy and I was able to listen to a conversation he had with a man about
helping people with disabilities. Samantha Fiore, Amy Klobuchar campaign Feb. 3
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., poses with students. Courtesy of Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan
After getting a full night of sleep, we woke up bright and early to
be on the vans by 8:30 a.m. to be at our internship placements. Jadzia
“Jazzy” Duarte and I made our way to Amy Klobuchar’s state headquarters,
where we quickly were given a very important task: putting stamps on
Commitment to Vote (CTV) cards.
After putting stamps on all the CTVs, we took a nice walk to the post
office, headed back to the office, and helped prepare for all of the
events Amy has this week(…) This meant that we packed three different
boxes with all the necessary supplies.
After dropping off more CTVs at the post office and grabbing a quick
lunch, we headed back to the office to begin making phone calls(…) This
was an awesome chance to speak to voters, hear what some of their key
issues were in this election (mostly electability and beating Trump) and
encourage them to consider voting for Amy.
All-in-all, it was a really fun first day. Everyone in Amy’s office
was really kind and appreciative of our help. It was a rewarding feeling
at the end of the day knowing we helped contribute, even a little, to a
massive presidential campaign for an amazing woman. Mitchell Etheridge, Andrew Yang campaign Feb. 7
Canvassing is the best in the snow!! To keep up with the students during their trip to New Hampshire, check the class blog on USF St. Petersburg’s website.
Former Vice President Joe Biden displays a USF St. Petersburg T-shirt. Courtesy of Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan
USF St. Pete students react to their volunteer experiences on New Hampshire presidential campaigns
Senator Bernie Sanders won the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary on Tuesday; the second- and third-place finishers, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar, also earned delegates with their strong performance.
They had help on their campaigns from political science students from the University of South Florida at St. Petersburg. Peyton Johnson, a senior majoring in political science, volunteered for the Sanders campaign.
“I think we accomplished what we came to do. And we
touched a lot of voters. I am really confident going into Super Tuesday
that we will be able to maintain the momentum that we have here.
“And when we go back to Florida, I know a lot of us have plans to
continue to canvas and phone bank and intern in those offices, because
we feel so strongly that Bernie Sanders will be our next president.”
SK: What was it like talking to voters in New Hampshire? What were
some of the issues that were important to them? And when you met Bernie
Sanders supporters, what were they supporting him for?
“Mainly, in New Hampshire, I was talking to a lot of
people who were still undecided. I mean, it was so ironic for me to talk
to voters who were two to three days from going to the polls and not
having a decision yet.
“Because in Florida, most of us know going in, you know, a week, two
weeks before. But because there’s such a grassroots movement here, they
get to see the candidates all the time. But, I think that it was
exciting, yet heartbreaking at the same time, to hear what the Trump
administration has done and how it has impacted some of the voters here
in New Hampshire.
“We talked to a lot of people who have family members who have
reached their cap for Medicare and have medical bills piling up. And
their parents are sick and they can’t get help. Or they have student
loans that are so high that they can’t pay them anymore. And it was
heartbreaking. But it also reassured me that the votes that we got were
genuine and not just because they were just trying to beat Donald Trump.
That they actually believed in candidate Sanders’ policies.”
Listen:
USF
St. Petersburg class will travel to New Hampshire to work on 2020
presidential primary campaigns. By Seán Kinane / WMNF News (30 Jan.
2020).
SK: As someone who worked on a campaign that won the state what can
you say about the experience, and what you look forward to going
forward?
“The experience was, I think the best word to use is
‘euphoric.’ I have never worked in a campaign that everyone was so
excited and had so much faith in someone that they didn’t know. And for
us to be fighting in the rain, in the cold, in the snow for someone who
we didn’t know really said something about American democracy.
“And I learned a lot about a process, and how really grassroots
organization really impacts each and every one of our lives. And I think
one of those takeaways that your vote really does matter, especially
here in this state. Also, in Iowa. Bernie won the popular vote in Iowa
and he won the popular vote here. And I have confidence that he will go
on to win the electoral college and become our next president.”
But not all the USF students worked for campaigns that did well. First-year political science student Manuel Rodriguez volunteered for former Vice President Joe Biden, who came in fifth.
“I mean, I was expecting it. Because just seeing how the
other students were talking about their campaigns, I knew that not a lot
of resources were going to Iowa and New Hampshire. And he’s definitely
prioritizing in Nevada and South Carolina.
“So, I wasn’t disappointed. I knew was going to happen. When I talked
to voters, they were pretty much all set, until you got to the
undecided. And the undecided had a bunch of different options. So, it’s
really hard to concentrate, you know, them onto one voter.”
Listen:
SK: When you talk to voters, especially voters who said that they
were supporting Joe Biden, what were some of the issues that were
important to them?
“The number one issue, I think for everybody across the
candidates, was to get this guy out of the White House. But definitely,
that was an appeal to Biden. A lot of people, including me, feel like he
has that electability factor. So, that was definitely number one.
And then number two, they just wanted somebody who would just be a
good, decent, honest, caring person. And I can tell you that, for a
fact, when I met him the first time, and I shook his hand, I definitely —
I knew him, and I hadn’t even met him. That’s the feeling that I got
from him.
“And I know he’s like that with every single person. I know he can work with people.
“He knows, he understands suffering because he experienced suffering.
And he knows how to connect with humans. And I think those are the
feelings that people get from him. That’s how he connects to people.”
SK: When you talk about shaking his hand, is that something that happened in New Hampshire? And if so, describe what happened.
“So, this was the first town hall that I had worked with
the three other Biden people. We had basically set up an event in
Concord for him to come speak at a local Town Hall public event. So, one
of the other students was like, ‘Oh let’s go take a photo with him.’
And I was like, ‘Oh, okay.’
“But there was this long line. We had to push through and we’re
pretty small people compared to the rest. So, we pushed through. And
then I got to take his hand. And I immediately just got this warm
presence as if, he’s there, I’m there. He knows what he’s doing. He
loves what he’s doing. He doesn’t seem like a politician. He just seems
like one human talking to another human talking about what both care
about. And immediately I got that vibe, which tells you something about
the person. And yeah, it was really special.”
Jazzy Duarte is a senior majoring in environmental
science and policy at USF St. Petersburg. She volunteered in New
Hampshire with the Klobuchar campaign.
“It was kind of insane. So, we were just doing some poll
visibility throughout the day. So, just sitting outside of the polls,
getting everyone excited about voting for Amy. And then we headed over
to Concord where they were having the victory party.
“And we just walk in and we see the TV with the results on, and we
were just like ‘Oh my gosh, she’s in third place! Do we start freaking
out right now or what?’ And it was just really exciting.
“We felt the excitement in the room from all the people, like the
staff, the volunteers, the supporters. Just so proud of her because it
was a moment that she definitely deserves.
“She was one of those candidates that not everyone believed was going
to make it. And she always talks about it in her speeches how they
didn’t think she was going to make it through her first state in
announcing her candidacy. And then now they didn’t think she was going
to make it to summer. But here she is, pushing through New Hampshire,
and then going to go to Nevada and South Carolina.”
SK: You probably spoke with a lot of voters. What was it about Amy
Klobuchar that they told you that changed their minds? And maybe, I
might specifically ask if anyone mentioned the debate?
“Yes. So that was a huge thing. When we were like making
calls, being sure that people knew about everything with Amy Klobuchar,
they said that the debate was the big turning point for their vote.”
Listen:
SK: And finally, what were some of the issues that people said were important to them?
“So, we got a lot of issues. I think that the biggest one
was defeating Donald Trump. That was a huge issue that people just
wanted to combat.
“But then also just having someone in office who’s actually going to make change.
“Some other issues that people directly classified: healthcare was
something really big. Climate change was a big one. Education was a big
one.
“So, I think just talking about all of those simultaneously while
trying to advocate for Amy’s campaign was really, really big. And just
seeing how much she’s developed as a leader on the candidate stage. And
seeing how well she is doing public speaking. But then also talking with
her constituents and seeing what they really need. And how she can
effectively do that while in office is something that’s transcending
among everyone else.”
The professor of the course is Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan. The students are blogging. You can read it here. And here is a link to the course blog.
Three Democratic presidential candidates have dropped out since polls closed on Tuesday: Deval Patrick, Michael Bennet and Andrew Yang.
Florida’s presidential preference primary election is March 17. The
deadline to register to vote or to change your party is Tuesday,
February 18.
Pictured above: Martindale poses in a New Hampshire neighborhood
while canvassing, holding up a stack of promotional photos for Senator
Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont. Courtesy Trevor Martindale
By Dylan Hart
It was a freezing February day in New Hampshire. Jacob Terrell,
undeterred by the bitter cold and rain, knocked on a door that he would
never forget.
An elderly woman came to the door and invited him in. They spoke
about the upcoming political primary by the fire, with tea in hand, for
almost half an hour. Terrell pitched his candidate, Elizabeth Warren, to
the woman. She was a stranger to Terrell, but her warmth and
hospitality still shined through.
“That’s something I’m going to take with me for the rest of my life,” Terrell said. “It was the American experience.”
Terrell was one of 29 students on the Road to the White House, an
intensive political science course that takes students to New Hampshire
for 10 days surrounding the primary election. Students picked their
candidate and volunteered on their team, knocking on doors and calling
phones alongside attending classes, forums and meetings.
Terrell, along with students Jadzia “Jazzy” Duarte, Trevor
Martindale, Haley Hobbs and Andrea Rodriguez Campos, shared experiences
from the New Hampshire snow to attendees at the Bay-to-Bay faculty
symposium on Feb. 14.
The students took a lot of lessons home with them from the election,
whether their candidate won or lost. While the six panelists were all
politically involved before traveling to New Hampshire, they all felt
that the experience fundamentally changed their understanding of the
political process.
“They can read about the New Hampshire primary, they can watch things
on the news, but I really wanted to take them to experience it for
themselves,” said professor Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan. “It’s
electrifying in a way that’s hard to describe.”
Duarte, who campaigned for Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said that
Scourfield McLauchlan telling students that they would be getting up at 6
a.m. to walk in the snow and getting back at midnight every day wasn’t
an exaggeration. Still, she learned a lot from the class.
“You saw how intense the campaign offices were and how into the field everyone was getting,” she said.
She was also struck by the sheer number of people she met while
volunteering, between voters and politicians. It motivated her to “be
even more involved in politics,” she said.
One rare facet of the campaign was the high number of undecided
voters on election day, said Scourfield McLauchlan. This led to a lot of
long talks with voters for students.
Martindale, who campaigned
for Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vermont, recalled a passerby rolling down his
window upon hearing Martindale’s team discussing Sanders. It turned
into a long conversation where the voter told the team his life story.
The state’s size gives the primary a close-knit feel that can’t be
captured in Florida, said Rodriguez Campos, who also campaigned for
Sanders.
There was a recurring joke in New Hampshire, she said,
that followed, “‘I’m not sure if I’m going to vote for Elizabeth Warren,
I’ve only met her twice.’ It shows New Hampshire politics in a
nutshell.”
The students on Sanders’ team saw him so many times that by the end,
they were reciting his speech from memory, Rodriguez Campos said.
The students’ experiences went beyond campaigning. Everyone met
candidates Pete Buttigieg, Tom Steyer and Amy Klobuchar. They also met
“media stars” like Kevin Costner and Michael J. Fox. Duarte and another
student on the Klobuchar campaign even got free tickets to the Feb. 7
debate in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: It was the best 10 days
of my life,” said Haley Hobbs, who worked for the Pete Buttigieg
campaign.
While the rest of us were watching the debate together on TV...… two of our students (those interning for Senator Amy Klobuchar's campaign) actually got tickets to be a part of the TV studio audience during the presidential debate just before the New Hampshire Primary!
8th Democratic Presidential Debate - St. Anselm College in Manchester
I was sooooooo excited for these two students!!
We were able to facetime before the debate started and they showed me around!
we were still in the lobby watching the post-debate coverage when they returned back to the hotel
We also visited the New Hampshire Democratic Party (and the New Hampshire Republican Party) to learn more about campaigns and elections and party politics in New Hampshire.
We very much appreciate our meeting with NHDP Chair Raymond Buckley. Not only does he have decades of experience working in politics and government in New Hampshire, but also he has had leadership roles with the DNC and with the Association of State Democratic Party Chairs and has helped with party-building efforts across the United States.
We very much appreciated Secretary of State Bill Gardner taking the time to meet with our class. Secretary Gardner is the longest serving Secretary of State in the United States, and he has been running elections in New Hampshire for decades.
This is the 100th year of the New Hampshire first-in-the-nation primary, and all of our students were given copies of sample ballots, which used the 100-year-old font/design.
Prior to leaving for New Hampshire, students were assigned to read excerpts of his book about the New Hampshire Primary, Why New Hampshire: The First-in-the-Nation Primary State (which he authored with Hugh Gregg).
Secretary Gardner spoke about this history of the New Hampshire first-in-the-nation primary and answered students' questions about the process, predicted turnout for 2020, and more.
All students were given copies of sample ballots -- and were surprised to find there were even MORE candidates running than they knew about. All you need is to pay $1,000, and you, too, can run for President!
Several student government leaders were in this year's Road to the White House class.
Here's a picture they posted of themselves by the New Hampshire State House on the SG social media:
"Your
SG leaders miss you! Some of us are away working hard on the New
Hampshire primary! Each of us got to choose a candidate to work for and
we can assure you we are learning a lot. Follow @iam_usfsp to get a
little inside scoop on each candidate! Even though we are far away, Go
Bulls!"
Top Row (from left): Zay
Castle, Senator / Andrea Rodriguez Campos, Director of Sustainable
Initiatives / Veronica Jimenez, Senate President / Trevor Martindale,
Chief Legal Officer Front Row (from left): Maria Starr, Director of Elections / Sarah Ortner, Chief of Staff / Peyton Johnson, Director of Student Government Relations / Samantha Fiore, Chief Justice / Jazzy Duarte, President
Peyton Johnson, a senior majoring in political science, volunteered for the Sanders campaign.
