The Ashland University Journalism and Digital Media Department’s cocurricular mediums, The Collegian, AUTV and 88.9 WRDL, are excited to bring you all Election ’24. Throughout this thread, The Collegian will be providing live updates with polls, stories and results relating to this year’s high-stakes election cycle.
Interested in watching or listening? The links will be provided below:
AUTV: https://www.ashland.edu/jdm-streaming
88.9 WRDL: https://live365.com/station/88-9-WRDL-a12400
So what if they tie?
By Graham Scott, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 11:30 p.m.
The presidential race is shaping up to be a nail-biter, but the question still stands – what happens if it ends in a tie?
There are multiple plausible (but unlikely) maps that wind up with a 269-269 split in the Electoral College. How does the electoral process proceed in this event?
In the event of a tie, the 12th Amendment outlines the process of a contingent election. This begins on January 6th of the inauguration year, when the new Congress is sworn in.
Put simply, the House would cast their votes for the president, and the Senate will vote for the vice president.
However, the process in the House isn’t as straightforward as it would seem. You could assume that each representative would get one vote, but instead, each state gets one vote, with the delegates from each state deciding where to cast it. Each senator also receives one vote.
From this process, an interesting dilemma appears. Members of Congress would have to choose between supporting the candidate that their people chose, and the candidate that matches their party.
So, in essence, the contingent election will end up as a similar, but very different struggle between parties, and with the closer split between parties in Congress, the race will wind up even closer than it’s already looking to be.
Why is Pennsylvania so crucial to the 2024 Election
By Payton O’Toole, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 11:20 p.m.
Growing up in Pennsylvania, like most states, you hear of the importance of using your right to vote.
However, in Pennsylvania, the pressure to vote is even more extreme thanks to living in what could arguably be the most important swing state.
Being a swing state means that you can go either Democratic or Republican. Most counties in Pennsylvania go full republican, being they are more rural. The closer you get to the cities though, the bluer it gets. Pittsburgh and Philadelphia almost always vote blue. Erie County swings between the two consistently, and it could come down to them when deciding this year’s election.
From 1992-2012, Pennsylvania voted Democratic. In 2016, Pennsylvania voted for Trump. In the 2020 election, Pennsylvania voted for President Biden. As of 10:40 p.m. on election night, Pennsylvania still has still not been called, but it is leaning republican.
The Electoral College and the importance of Swing States
By Kiersten Boecker, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 11:00 p.m.
The Electoral College is the 538-member body that is used to elect a president in the United States.
The number of electors in each state comes from the number of people in congress, which is determined by population size of the state. For example, Vermont is a smaller state with a population of around 647 thousand and they are given 3 electors, or 3 electoral votes. Comparatively, California has a population of around 38 million and has 55 electors.
For a candidate to win the Electoral College they need to accumulate 270 electoral votes out of the 538, or the majority. Electoral votes come with a “winner takes all” system within 48 out of the 50 states.
This means that each state will determine the majority vote, and whichever candidate wins, they take all the electoral votes.
The states Maine and Nebraska work differently, assigning electors using a proportional system. The projected winner of the election is announced the night of election in November, however the Electoral College vote takes place in mid-December, when the electors of each state meet.
The Importance of Swing States
Most states are seen consistently voting for a certain political party. However, swing states or “battleground” states hold a different story. Swing states are less predictable and have the chance of going towards a democratic or republican vote.
One well-known swing state is Pennsylvania, which consistently shows close margins between the two parties.
Swing states have a competitive nature with no candidate having a clear lead, meaning each candidate has a close chance to picking up electoral votes from these states.
Presidential candidates visit and campaign in these states often to win over these states.
JDM covers AU Election watch-party
By Aubrey Wood, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 10:45 p.m.
On election night of 2024, AU students followed live voting results in many ways.
Journalism Digital Media students provided live election coverage across different media platforms, as well as interacted with the College Democrats and Republicans at their annual Ashbrook watch party.
The event was held in the Ronk lecture hall located in the Schar Education building on campus.
JDM student McKayla Wymer attended the watch party along with production and social media teams.
“I think that students’ opinions on the election are very important because they are the new voices that are coming into vote,” explained Wymer.
Wymer interviewed multiple students who identified themselves with both the College Democrats and College Republicans.
“I love getting diverse opinions and just seeing where everyone comes from, and there are a lot of different stand points that everyone takes,” said Wymer.
Being queer on Election Night: Eagles for Pride leadership offers advice on how to stay safe during troubled times
By Graham Scott, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 8:50 p.m.
The election season of 2024 is a charged subject for everyone, but the queer community is more concerned than most.
Rightfully so, considering their contentious status and tentative hold on their human rights throughout American history. More than ever, it is important to recognize the conflicts that may arise during a time such as the election, where their very existence is made into a political issue.
Eagles for Pride, AU’s on-campus LGBTQ+ organization, is dedicated to making sure everyone, queer or not, has a safe and happy election night.
Ashland is a historically right-leaning county, and the campus has had issues in the past with intolerance, so I and many other queer AU students have some worries about potential dangers on campus during the election season.
I spoke to some EPF leadership to help assuage some of of these fears and get some advice for facing this difficult time.
EFP president Kay Michaels has special sympathy for those who have faced abuse or violence because of their identities. “I’ve been called slurs when walking at night… being gay on campus has its ups and downs but during elections, I take extra care to protect myself.”
Vice President of Programming Raymond Yeh echoed this sentiment as well. “Being queer, especially in a big election year is pretty difficult, especially when you hear rhetoric regarding people that you care about as being less than human.”
Their biggest point for staying safe was strength in numbers. Ray said, “One of the big things for being queer on election night is staying in groups, or being around straight-passing people… [that] generally makes people who might have hatred towards you perceive you as ‘one of the good ones’, or in a group that’s large enough that they can’t do anything to hurt you.”
Kay said as well, “What I have found best is walking with male friends, and when they can’t walk with me I’ll call Safety Services for an escort.”
Despite the acknowledgment of potential danger, they still offered encouragement, especially in terms of voting. Ray said, “Remember that it is okay to vote your conscience. I’ve seen a lot
of people posting things about voting this way or that way, for the sake of LGBT rights or women’s reproductive rights… I think it’s important to remember that you need to vote your conscience regardless because that’s the only way we’re going to affect change in our government.”
He continued, saying, ”We [queer people] are a cultural force, whether certain political parties are willing to recognize that or not. Queer people are a political force and we can affect change.”
Eagles for Pride is all about being yourself, no matter the circumstance. Kay said, “I would describe EFP as a place where people can be themselves… I’ve always viewed this club as a group of people who are loving and accepting, and that’s the goal of the club at the end of the day.”
However, they recognize that sometimes to be safe is to be hidden. Ray said, “As much as it pains me to say, being closeted, or at least attempting to be cis or straight passing for a little while is a viable option for some people… Wherever possible, don’t engage with people, especially if they’re shouting hateful comments at you. Take that in stride… not giving them the satisfaction of a reaction is sometimes the best way to combat that.”
For queer people, it may feel like their whole lives are hanging in the balance. In the eyes of many, Donald Trump represents a genuine threat to LGBTQ+ rights, access to gender-affirming care, and even personal security.
However, it is important not to lose hope, and to stay positive. Whatever happens, we are all still Americans, and we’re all in this together.
Ashland County Board of Election: What makes it special?
By Lauren Gulden, published on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 9:00 a.m.
The Ashland County Board of Elections is busiest during voting season, but the work leading up to it motivates workers.
Employees are in charge of preparing the office before election season. They ensure the place is ready for voters come October.
“Well, we’re gonna do testing of equipment, setting up. you’re always tweaking. . . that’s what goes on all year long,” said Denny Edwards, an employee.
The Board of Elections consists of about 175 precinct election officials, or “poll workers.” Paul Kauffman teaches classes built for these individuals and believes the job is important for all to consider.
“What do I teach the poll workers when I come here? I ask them that question every time I teach a class. Why are you here? We want them to know how important their job is, and how significant the role they play is,” Kauffman said. “We call them ‘hometown heroes’ because they are the frontline of democracy. Without how free and fair elections get, you can’t have an America as we know it today.”
By mentioning fair elections, these workers emphasize that voting is important. Sharing your vote is vital since the presidential race is not annual.
More information on this establishment can be found at BOE.ohio.gov.
Competing campaigns lead to USA’s 47th President to be announced soon
By Dashia Lanai, published on Monday, Nov. 4 at 1:00 p.m.
The 2024 Presidential Election will be held on Nov. 5 of 2024 with two main candidates running against one another: democratic nominee Kamala Harris and republican nominee Donald Trump.
Former President Trump’s campaign has a focus on taxes and bettering cost for America’s future through ending double taxation.
On the other hand, current Vice President Harris’ campaign focuses on lowering healthcare cost and advocating for those in medical need.
This race differed from previous years due to current President Joe Biden dropping out of the race and being replaced by Harris in July.
People, such as Ashland University’s Assistant Professor Jeffrey Delbert, have analyzed this race and compared and contrasted the campaign strategies.
He finds that Harris campaign focuses on reaching out to different demographics while Trumps campaign is attack heavy.
Delbert said, “There’s this outreach happening with Harris, I’ve seen, where she’s trying to reach other voters because she is unknown and she is trying to reach out to all sorts of voters where she might not, otherwise. So, in that campaign strategy, I don’t think there’s necessarily too much new except in that these individuals have to articulate – Harris needs to articulate that she has experience but at the same time, she has to distance herself from President Biden’s policies.”
AU Associate Professor of Political Science Adam Carrington also compares and contrasts the campaigns of Harris and Trump.
He finds that Harris has a more suburban and urban demographic while Trump gains more attention from rural areas.
He also touches on the campaigns finding Harris is stricter and more controlled while the Trump campaign is more unscripted; however, he finds that these both play to the strengths of each candidate’s campaign.
The 47th president of the United States of America will be announced on Nov. 5 on the JDM Streaming Website for the 2024 Election Show.