Pizza, pop and bingo are often seen as party staples. At Washington and Lee, they’re Democratic Party staples, to be precise.
Chuckles swept through Stackhouse Theater on Oct. 1 as members of College Democrats watched the vice presidential debate. Each had a bingo card to keep up with the quips of Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz — the squares up for grabs included Taylor Swift, Walz calling Vance “weird,” dogs and cats in Springfield, and more.
Yards away, laughter filled Huntley Hall as well as the College Republicans hosted their own watch party for the debate. Students’ lively commentary — and occasional applause or table-slaps of support — cascaded from row to row of seating.
“Debates offer educational value and entertainment value,” said Henry Haden, ’25, president of Washington and Lee’s chapter of College Republicans. “Regardless, it’s important to be knowledgeable before you vote, and that’s why we’re here.”
Both Haden and the College Democrats President Brady Madden, ’26, said there’s a tangible change in political involvement on campus as the election approaches. Attendance for events is up for both clubs, the leaders said, and the energy is higher, too.
“People are more tuned-in now than I’ve seen in the past,” Madden said of College Democrats, “partially due to how Kamala Harris has revitalized the party, but also because we’ve been putting a lot of work into our events.”
In the past three years, Madden said, College Democrats would consider 10 to 20 attendees as a good turnout for meetings and events. So club leaders were shocked when about 100 students stopped by their screening of the presidential debate on Sept. 10, he said.
About 50 returned for the vice presidential debate this Tuesday, Madden said, and dozens have contributed to phone banking events since the start of the semester.
Haden agreed, saying the 40 students at College Republicans’ event on Tuesday and even more at the September debate marked “much higher” turnout than he’s seen for the organization before. It’s the product of not only the election year buzz but also former speaker events and programming that strengthened the cohort, he said.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have taken note of young voters’ energy and are hoping to tap into it, according to the Washington Post. Harris doubled her campaign’s youth organizing staff and launched a college campus tour in battleground states, according to the Post, while Trump’s campaign is investing in influencers and digital advertising targeted to young voters.
It’s all because young voters could have a significant impact on the election: nationwide, nearly 42 million 18-to-27-year-olds, those known as Generation Z, will be eligible to vote this November, according to a Post analysis of 2022 census data.
Haden and Madden said they want to make sure Washington and Lee’s small section of those 42 million voters are not only informed about how to vote but also excited about participating in the political process.
For College Republicans, Haden said, the key is to focus events on taking action. The group hosted a phone bank night and voter registration drives in September and hopes to set up volunteer opportunities for door-knocking as well, he said. The organization coordinates with the College Republicans National Committee to make calls in the areas that need volunteers the most, like swing-state Wisconsin.
“People are finding value in College Republicans this year because there are volunteering opportunities where you can have a direct impact,” Haden said.
Another important part of programming is adding a “personal touch” to the sometimes confusing and distant world of politics by inviting speakers who students can relate to, Haden added. The club hosted Ben Anderson, the Republican Party chairman for Greenbrier County, West Virginia, to speak before the debate watch party on Tuesday.
Anderson, now 25 years old, said he first got involved with his county’s Republican Party six years ago. His early political involvement gave him the chance to “see things and meet people that I otherwise would have never had the opportunity to,” he said — such as attending the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this July.
“Anybody that encourages you to wait to get involved in politics until after your career is set, do not listen to them,” he said to the audience of Washington and Lee’s College Republicans.
“It’s good to talk with someone young who’s making a difference. It’s important to see that as a college student,” said Alex Kagan, ’27, who took the lead on bringing Anderson to campus.
Madden said the College Democrats organization also strives to make political topics more relatable by inviting speakers to campus. The club hopes to coordinate an event with Ken Mitchell, a Virginia candidate for U.S. Congress, in the coming months, he said.
In the meantime, the organization plans to continue to hold phone banking events to support the Harris-Walz campaign every Tuesday, Madden said. The volunteer events are not only a great way to stay engaged in the election, he said, but they also serve as an important professional development experience.
“At many interviews for jobs and internships in the political field, the first question is, ‘Have you ever worked for or volunteered for a campaign?’” Madden said. “After coming to these events, you can say ‘yes’ to that question.”
For Brody Sandifer-Williams, ’28, College Democrats’ events have served another purpose: cultivating community.
“It’s cool to be surrounded by other people who are interested in politics,” he said. “It’s way easier to get involved than I thought.”
He said he’s “pumped” to vote for the first time this November — his parents have brought him to the polls since he was six months old, so he’s been waiting for this moment for 18 years.
College Republicans and College Democrats aren’t alone in making sure students have the resources they need to vote. Members of the SPEAK club and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. tabled in Elrod Commons Oct. 3 to help students register to vote and track their absentee ballot application.
Voter registration is one of AKA’s program targets this year, said sorority member Laura Murambadoro, ’26. The Tau Zeta chapter is running a four-part voter education series which it started in September, with events such as “Popcorn and Politics” where students can discuss the upcoming election and the influence of the Black vote.
“I just want people to know that their vote matters,” Murambadoro said. “Young voters could have a big influence on this election.”
The First-Year Orientation Committee is also getting involved by partnering with College Democrats and College Republicans to run registration drives where students can ask questions about how to vote while they’re away from home.
Madden said his main advice for students is that voting while you’re at college is much easier than it seems. You don’t even have to go to the post office, he said.
According to the campus mail services’ website, absentee ballots will be accepted into the services’ tracking system, which means students will be notified by email when ballots arrive and can pick them up the same way they would pick up a package.
And it’s not too late to get involved, Madden added. He and Haden said both College Democrats and College Republicans, respectively, plan to continue programming until election night.
But their work won’t end in November, Madden said — the clubs’ leaders are hoping to “harness the momentum” of the election year to establish a presence on campus for future semesters.
“Even after this election hype dies down, we hope the energy carries over. In Virginia, there’s elections every year, so we’ll need it,” Madden said.
