Since his announcement last year, I have been fascinated by the level of activism of the student populations on campuses across this nation in support of Bernie Sanders. While I am a proud Hillary Clinton supporter, I have been delighted to see that so many students are taking a vested interest in their future and the future of this country by registering to vote and becoming outspoken activists for a cause they believe in. But what happens if Sanders drops out, or does not become the Democratic nominee at the convention? With polls showing Clinton to be the favorite to become the nominee, I worry that all of the activism and organization of students that has taken place in support of Bernie could be lost once he is no longer in the race.
While various polls have shown that a majority of Sanders supports would support Clinton in the general, a disconcerting amount of people say they would not. I hope every college-age Sanders supporter would give the former secretary of state a fair chance to earn their vote. After all, both Clinton and Sanders share core policy values on topics such as student debt, racial justice and women’s rights, just to name three. Another reason that needs no further explanation is Donald Trump is looking more and more like the Republican nominee. But if you are a student who just does not want to support or advocate for Hillary, know that there are other avenues for you to continue to advocate for Democratic values, and your preferred policy outcomes.
In New York state alone, the upcoming election is shaping up as an election wherein Democrats could do very well as long as people vote, and also advocate strongly for candidates. At the federal level, we need to ensure that we re-elect our Democratic congressional members, but more importantly we need to elect Democrats in the districts currently held by Republicans, such as the district the University resides in. If we want our Democratic nominee, no matter who they are, to have the best chance of success, we need Democrats elected to the house and senate to prevent the obstructionism we have seen since Republicans took over Congress under Obama.
At the state level, core Sanders policy topics such as increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, alleviating student debt and ensuring healthcare for all could be approved in New York state. As it stands, the Republicans hold a slim majority in the Senate, but in a presidential year like this, Democrats have a great chance of swinging the senate their way. This could be one the best ways to continue activism for Bernie and his policies even if he is no longer in the race. While those policies would not happen country-wide, in New York, you could see them become a reality.
In closing, I would love to see every Sanders supporter become just as active in support of Clinton, but I know realistically that it probably won’t happen. So if you are one of those people, please know that there are other places for your activism to be just as valuable. If we want to see progressive policies passed, we need to work together at every level of government to ensure we elect people who will make those policies a reality. So if Sanders drops out or loses, please don’t give up; just find a new avenue for your activism, because come November, we will need it.
Harris Weiss is a senior majoring in political science.