About 1,000 people attended the Republican presidential rally at Northwestern on Friday Oct. 30. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, former business executive Carly Fiorina, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum were the candidates who were each given 20 minutes to speak at the event, hosted by the NW Iowa Republicans.
The campus Republican club helped with the arrangement of the event, including senior James Juergens.
“There were different tasks assigned to all members,” Juergens said. “Some of these tasks included taking tickets at the front, helping people get seated, working the VIP booth, and many others.”
Each candidate shared his or her point of view on a range of topics including the economy, abortion, budget deficit and their experience.
Juergens believes that the event was overall well done.
“It was not a debate or a ‘he said she said’ event, but more of an informative time where we could get to know some of the candidates and their stances on a few political issues,” he said.
Attendees included a group of 40 NW students, professors and community members who all wore matching green shirts that said, “What about climate action?”
Junior Joseph Tolsma and senior Lincoln Morris organized the group through their position with Young Evangelicals for Climate Action, or YECA.
“We wanted to show that climate change is not a partisan issue and also encourage people to think about climate change in a way that they haven’t before,” Tolsma said
Tolsma would like for it to be known that in no way was the intent of the group to act as a protest.
“Absolutely no member of the group did anything to attack another person,” Tolsma said. “If our presence upset anyone I sincerely apologize. I had multiple conversations with people that were great opportunities for both of us to better understand the other person’s viewpoint. In the end that was the goal. Better understanding of the other.”
Tolsma believes attending the event had positive effects on the group and people in attendance.
“It created solidarity within our own group and relayed the message to a lot of people active in the Iowa political landscape that climate action is important to people in the area,” Tolsma said.
Juergens encourages other students to go to rallies and talks in the future as a time of learning regardless of their position.
“Regardless of whether it is Republican, Democrat or both I think that these opportunities are a great way for students to become more informed on issues that are present within our society today,” Juergens said. “Whether or not I agree with the speakers, it still can provide me with more knowledge, and a better base to make informed decisions about the potential future leaders of America.”
