Students and staff prepare for the election

By Matthew Rivers, Ranger Reporter:

After the first round of presidential debates, the Amarillo College community is weighing in on the candidates.

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are running for the presidency, and the race is notable for many reasons, said Brian Farmer, a political science professor. Farmer described both candidates as unfavorable. “They’ve got the most un-electable Democrat running and the most un-electable Republican running,” Farmer said.

He pointed out that this election offers many firsts, such as “the first candidate with three wives and four bankruptcies. I can’t remember an election where both candidates have a larger disapproval rating than approval rating,” Farmer said.

Another first is that Clinton is the first female to vie for a spot in the oval office. “A female presidency changed the whole game up,” Bryan Whiteside, a respiratory care major said. 

“I don’t see much that’s new except for a woman is running,” C.J. Knox, a business management major, said.

Some students also note that Trump lacks a background in politics. “I think we have someone without any political experience running,” said Zayne Velasco, a nursing major.

Other students believe this election is no different than any other. “Everything’s the same; just different people,” Jonathan Medellin, a criminal justice major said.

While students like Rigo Pena, a nursing major, think people are not taking the election seriously this year, other students appear to care deeply about the outcome of the upcoming election. “I think AC students care about the election due to our large Hispanic population, and we have a lot of conservative students as well,” Farmer said, and Velasco agreed with him. 

Velasco said he believes that the AC community has the potential to make an impact on the nation. “I feel [the election] is very important; we’re the future basically,” he said.

Others said they hope to gain more information about the candidates before the election. “There’s too much that is unknown,” Knox said. Election Day will be Nov. 8, 2016.