Photo by Morgan Franz
Photo by Morgan Franz
By Morgan Franz
With less than two weeks until Election Day, national polls show a tight race between former President Donald Trump and sitting Vice President Kamala Harris. Pennsylvania in particular is shaping up to be a key battleground state, and could potentially decide the outcome of the election. Both former President Trump and President Joe Biden narrowly won the state, in 2016 and 2020 respectively, meaning that the decision could be a matter of mere thousands of Pennsylvania voters. Dr. Nicholas Pyeatt, a Political Science professor who studies United States elections, gives his input on the impact that students at Penn State Altoona can have on the future of the nation.
“Pennsylvania has historically been a swing state,” says Pyeatt, “not quite in every election cycle in the last 40 or 50 years, but in most election cycles.” Despite its large population and geographic size, Pennsylvania has remained fairly evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, especially in recent history. In 2016, Trump won the state by a narrow 0.72% over Hillary Clinton, while Bide1n won by a similarly thin 1.17% in 2020.
Pyeatt also emphasizes that Pennsylvania is a key strategic state for Democratic candidates in particular, saying, “it is very difficult in particular for Democrats to win the presidency without winning the state of Pennsylvania.” This effect is likely to repeat itself on Election Day, as many political analysts have cited Pennsylvania as a make-or-break victory for Harris.
Former President Trump also has a fairly unique connection to the state of Pennsylvania. After an assassination attempt this past summer at a rally in Butler, Trump has made significant efforts to campaign the state. This past Saturday, Trump held a rally at Bryce Jordan Center, in State College, where he spoke to Penn State students as well as the general public.
Pyeatt encourages both in-state and out-of-state students to exercise their right to vote. He cites a Department of Justice ruling, which declares that full-time out-of-state students have the right to vote in their state of choice, either their native state or that of their current full time university. If a student chooses to vote in person in Pennsylvania, they could do so by mail in ballot or in-person on Election day. If a student would prefer to vote in their home state, Pyeatt encourages them to contact their local County Board of Elections for more information on the remote voting process.
Although the voter registration deadline has passed, students prepare to vote on Nov. 5. The State of Pennsylvania specifies items which all first-time voters must have a valid form of identification. For college students in particular, a student ID is considered acceptable, as well as a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation driver’s license or a U.S passport. This is especially important for college students, as young adults are becoming increasingly politically involved, and many will be voting for the first time this November.
“I do think this is going to be a very close election, looking at all of the polling data,” Dr. Pyeatt concludes, encouraging all students to participate in the upcoming election. “it’s hard to imagine a fully functioning democracy without good participation.”