Daily Nebraskan

Issue date: 4/22/08 Section: News

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DES MOINES, IOWA - Sloane Cornelius never felt she could effect political change.

But there she was, on Feb. 9, sitting with her back to a wall in the Nebraska Union, surrounded by 207 student Democrats while waiting for the first caucus ever held in the Cornhusker state to begin.

For once, the sophomore vocal performance major felt plugged in to the nation's political system.

"We deserve this," Cornelius said. "A lot of us have never had a reason to care until now."

Next to her sat fellow University of Nebraska-Lincoln student Krystal Wilwerding. She jumped at the chance to tell nearby students that this caucus and this election represent history in the making.

"It's not just a new president," Wilwerding said. "I feel like a difference will be made. I finally feel like I'm an American."

The tight Democratic race in this primary season put the spotlight on many often-ignored primary states, including Nebraska.

Political activism among youth has become a hallmark of the 2008 presidential primaries, and it has affected college campuses across the country.

It began in Iowa, a state accustomed to the spotlight come primary season. But the election hoopla - including candidate speeches, campus forums and armies of young volunteers - has spread, all the way to California and Nebraska.

Students, not surprisingly, say they're glad to be relevant.

On Jan. 3, during the year's first primary, young voters across Iowa came out in the thousands to support their candidates on caucus day.

Aliza Rosenthal, a freshman psychology and religion major at Drake University in Des Moines, traveled from her home in Lawrence, Kan., during her winter break to caucus for Barack Obama on Drake's campus.

Rosenthal said she drove to Iowa to caucus because, most years, it's tough to get politically motivated in Kansas, a deeply red state with a much later primary.

"It's exciting to be in a position where it really matters that we're here," she said.

About 178 people filled the precinct where the majority of Drake students caucused. The actual event took place in a classroom, where posters from former candidates Chris Dodd and Mitt Romney hung next to signs about turning off cell phones during class.

In Iowa, six candidates from each party were still in the running. Candidate groups tried to tempt undecided students with food and promises: Chris Dodd's group touted doughnuts and experience while Hillary Clinton's group sported sandwiches and health care reform.

Caitlin Seick, a freshman journalism and English major at Drake, said getting involved during the political season was an important part of the Iowa culture.

"Younger people are criticized many places for not participating (in politics)," she said, "so it's important to go vote and caucus. If you're from Iowa, you have a chance to really make a difference."

It's true. Most years the Iowa caucus sets the stage for the rest of the country - most candidates picked from Iowa's Republican and Democratic caucuses have been selected as the party nominee for the last 20 years. This year, 65,230 Iowans under the age of 30 came out to caucus in favor of Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Matt Patterson, a freshman biochemistry major at Drake, said he formed his opinion of the candidates when they visited Des Moines to speak at the school. "I can speak openly about my views here and that's totally acceptable," he said of Iowa's political scene.

Patterson and Rosenthal joined other students at Drake's Olmsted Student Center on caucus night. The center opened its conference rooms to students who needed a place to stay overnight while caucusing during winter break.

"Part of the mission statement of Drake University is to create engaged and global citizens, and voting is part of that," said Ericca Pollack, the director of residence life for Drake.

"Des Moines is the center of politics right now; we get all the candidates coming here. It's great to get so many people on campus and get them interested in voting."

Iowa, when compared to other states, is intensely focused on politics come primary season, which creates an energy that filters down to the campus level, Pollack said.

"It's almost impossible to not be involved," she said. "Our students' awareness of the world has impacted them to be more engaged."

Though Drake University is a small campus of about 5,000 students, its location in Iowa's capital city brings a lot of candidate traffic.

Dan Sadowski, president of the Drake student government, said the political season puts an "aura around campus."

"Knowing that you're in an early swing state means you're not locked into a candidate," Sadowski said. "Knowing that your involvement makes more a difference stimulates interest in students."

Youth turnout for the Iowa caucus tripled compared to 2004, partly because of youth activism groups such as the Rock the Caucus campaign, a coalition started by the Iowa Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), Rock the Vote and Michael Mauro, Iowa's Secretary of State.

In Ames, on the day before the caucus, PIRG field organizers handed out Rock the Caucus T-shirts to Iowa State University students at a John Edwards event at a local deli close to campus.

Throngs of students packed the brick-lined street and shivered in subzero temperatures to catch a glimpse of the North Carolina senator. Several people who couldn't shove their way into the deli peeked inside windows or stood outside to wait for Edwards' exit.

Erik Smith, one of the field organizers, said candidates need to pay attention to the student vote.

"Both parties have neglected young people before," he said. "Twenty-five percent of the electorate is 18 to 24-year-olds. They're not lazy; it's just a matter of engagement."

In Iowa, presidential candidates visited more than 2,100 cities combined, according to the Des Moines Register.

"You have to be here," Smith said. "If you do not engage young people to vote, they won't."

Brian Phillips, the student body president of Iowa State University, said candidates are attracted by Ames' large student population.

"Things change quite a bit here during caucus time," he said. "You don't have to look very far if you want to go see a candidate talk or get more information. That's kind of nice."

The school does its best to engage students in politics as well, he said. ISU held its "Political Action Week" in September, and student groups handle visits and political events throughout the year.

Atul Nakhasi, a junior pre-med biology major at the University of Iowa, said campus is intense during caucus season.

"The students here are very politically inclined," he said. "We've witnessed here that students do have the power to change the system."

Nakhasi is president of the University of Iowa Democrats and has talked personally with many of the candidates. He said candidates target Iowa students specifically. Obama went on a college tour throughout Iowa before the caucus and Bill Clinton did the same.

Nakhasi said talking to students helps candidates overcome some student apathy. But big policy issues matter, too.

"There are several key student issues this year that will have a lasting impact on us," he said, citing the Iraq war, global warming and health insurance.

Increasing interest in politics among youth is not merely an Iowan phenomenon.

Across the country, youths ages 18 to 29 have been paying more attention to politics. In 2006, youth voter turnout for the mid-term elections increased by 2 million. In 2004, 20.1 million youths voted in the presidential election, up from 4.3 million in 2000, according to the New Voters Project.

And, as the 2008 Democratic primary continued to be close, young voters continued to tune in.

In New Hampshire, young voters increased their numbers by 25 percent in the primary. On Super Tuesday, young voters doubled their numbers in Massachusetts and tripled them in Georgia, according to the New Voters Project.

In California, an important primary state, almost 900,000 voters under 30 went to the polls - a 7 percent increase in youth turnout from 2004.

California has 170 delegates, the most of any state.

At a mock caucus at the University of Calfornia at Berkeley hosted by the Cal Democrats club, students prepared for Super Tuesday by learning about the primary and caucus process.

"I'm 20. When Bush was elected, I was 12," said Naomi Herman, a Berkeley student. "This is my first opportunity to have a voice. That's why it's such an exciting time."

California campuses also drew many candidate visits, rallies and political events before Super Tuesday. Rallies organized by Obama supporters from Berkeley brought Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.com, and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon to the steps of the school's administration building.

The display drew a large gathering of Obama fans from campus, though Hillary supporters could be seen dotting the crowd.

Nakhasi said student voters are having their moment across the country.

"This could be a political movement for decades to come," Nakhasi said. "Some people have been saying (this election) reminds them of the (1960s and 70s), when students rose to the challenge of the Vietnam War. It's awakened a sleeping giant. And I hope it stays awake."

Though Nebraska didn't receive the attention Iowa did from candidates, Chelsea Clinton and Michelle and Barack Obama did make stops in Nebraska the week of the Feb. 9 caucus - moves that surprised some students.

"To get to hear people who know (the candidates) shows who they are," Chelle Boomgaarden, a UNL freshman political science major, said after seeing Michelle Obama speak at the Lied Center for Performing Arts in February. "It's great that they're here."

At the speech, an audience of about half students and half community members punctuated the speech with cheers for her and her husband.

Boomgaarden, who caucused for Hillary Clinton, also saw Chelsea Clinton speak at UNL.

"I'm really happy that student involvement in politics has been increasing in the last few years," she said. "People are getting involved and candidates are looking more at our age group."

David Solheim, UNL student government president, went to Council Bluffs, Iowa, to watch the caucus in January and caucused himself in Nebraska. He said the Iowa caucus had a rally-like atmosphere, while the one he attended in Lincoln was full of home-town discussion.

He said students in Iowa, Nebraska and across the country have been energized by the opportunity for change in Washington. In particular, Nebraskans, like Iowans, have been inspired by being "difference makers" in the national scene.

"I don't care what you believe, but believe in something and act on it," Solheim said.

Tyler Cambley, a junior secondary education major who participated in mock caucus training at the Nebraska Union in February, could see the transition Nebraska took to look more like its neighbor to the east.

"My parents never went to the primaries because they knew it wouldn't matter," he said. "But now, it's cool to know that even the Democrats have a say in such a red state."

Beth Rempfer, a UNL freshman political science major, said the transition to a caucus from a direct primary also put an additional spotlight on Nebraska politics.

"Now there is more of a say," she said.

In Nebraska, no exit polls were taken after the caucus, and the Democratic Party has not yet released an age breakdown of turnout. But at the Nebraska Union, one of the precinct locations for the caucus, about 200 students crammed into the Regency room.

Three other rooms in the union were filled with caucusers from other parts of Lincoln, but the campus district was the rowdiest. To claim about seven undecided caucus-goers in that room, the Obama and Clinton sides of the room each shouted about health care and plans for the economy.

Cornelius caucused for Obama, along with the majority of the campus precinct. She spoke out during the exchange session between the Clinton and Obama sides of the room. Sporting a "bros before hoes" T-shirt with pictures of Obama and Clinton, Cornelius became one of the delegates to go on to the next round of caucusing June 8.

"This caucus shows what a great community UNL is," she said. "People think we're apathetic. But we aren't."

katienieland@dailynebraskan.com

Jon Crowl and Chris Rosacker contributed to this report.

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