By: Corey Cooper, Hillary Hughes, Justin Little, Christine McMahon Graphic by: Lindsey Campbell
The two main topics or concerns in the 2012 presidential election were foreign policy and the economy, according to the interviews conducted post-election.
Students waited anxiously for the results that rolled in late Tuesday night, informing the country President Barack Obama was reelected for a second term.
Students were asked whom they voted for and why, and what would they say if they had one minute to talk to President Obama.
The majority of people interviewed voted for Gov. Mitt Romney.
“I agreed with most of his (Romney) policies,” said Luis Trevino, sophomore political science major from Brownsville, Texas.
Emily Stone, a sophomore education major from Kingsport, Tenn. also voted for Romney.
“I liked his standpoint from a Republican side, we haven’t made improvements in the past four years,” said Stone.
In contrast, Jeff Preptit, sophomore political science major from Bristol, Tenn., voted for President Obama because he agreed strongly with his foreign policies.
There were interesting and different responses to the question, “if you had one minute to talk to President Obama, what would you say?”
Some individuals wanted to know how the president felt during the reelection, while others wanted to know if the president had any regrets in his last four years of office.
One of Cody Hyder’s concerns was the recent legalization of recreational marijuana, and the increase number of states that legalized same sex marriage. Hyder, who is from Elizabethton, Tenn., said he would ask President Obama how he felt about those issues.
Amanda Critcher, a sophomore nursing major from Boone, NC., said she would tell President Obama to, “help us get out of debt.”
The buzz about the election has died down some, but students continue discussing the big issues such as the economy that are currently shaping our country. After all, this was the first presidential election many current students were eligible to vote in.
Watch the video for more student responses.
milliganstampede
