What Elizabeth Warren's Campaign Meant to Me

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Image by Washington Post.  Description:  Elizabeth Warren smiling, holding a microphone against an American Flag backdrop

This post is going to be a little different than my previous ones.  However, I needed an outlet to write about how I was feeling.

Like many others around the nation today, I find myself at a loss for words.  So what do I do when I cannot speak about my feelings?  I write about them.  This morning, Senator Elizabeth Warren decided to suspend her campaign for the presidency.  As many of you know, I identify as a Democrat and have dedicated a large part of my limited free time to volunteering for candidates to help get Democrats elected at the local, state, and this year, national level.  That being said, something that a lot of you may not have known, as I had not discussed this much, was that I fully supported Elizabeth Warren's campaign.

I did so, for many reasons.  I had a hard time picking a candidate, especially when the field was so large and filled with great options.  Ultimately, my decision came down to a few of her biggest policy plans.

Of all of the candidates, she had the best Disability Rights platforms of any candidate during this election cycle.  In addition, she made a point to include people with disabilities in any of her other platforms where it directly affected that particular group, which was nearly all of them.  Secondly, I loved her climate change and women's and reproductive rights platforms.

Heading into today, I knew this news was coming, yet I had not anticipated just how deeply it would affect me.  Even though she was not the first woman to run for president, and hopefully not the last, her movement and what she stood for felt monumental, especially at this pivotal moment in our nation's history.  She was the first presidential candidate that I ever felt really and truly passionate about.  I was excited to volunteer for her and could not wait to watch as she made history.

Elizabeth Warren and so many amazing women in politics have inspired me in a multitude of ways.  I decided to get more closely involved in politics because of women like Warren.  I have even tossed around this crazy notion of potentially running for a political position one day myself.

In addition to reaching out to voters through text for her campaign, I was a member of a group of campus endorsing her candidacy.  Through this group, I was able to serve on its executive board.  I will forever appreciate everyone involved in that group and have made incredibly close friends, particularly those on the executive board with me.  I will carry this club and the experiences that I have had with it, with me forever.

All of that being said, I will continue to volunteer to help Democrats win in 2020, and I encourage all of her former supporters to do the same.  I have decided to dedicate my time now to organizations that aim to increase voter turnout, as my voting block (18-29-year-olds) voted at only 13% on Super Tuesday.  I will also be volunteering for another candidate's campaign.  If you find yourself unsure of who to support, I encourage you to go to Bernie Sanders' and Joe Biden's websites and read about both platforms.  In addition, I recommend looking up both of their voting records, I like using Vote Smart.

To those of you upset today, I am right there with you.  I and so many others, poured my heart and soul into volunteering for her campaign, because she inspired me so much.  I send my deep gratitude to Elizabeth Warren, her movement, and so many past, present, and future female leaders in the country.

Thanks for reading!

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