The 2016 presidential race is off to a hot start, with many polarizing candidates in the running. However, the race seems to be focused mainly on a few key candidates, ranging from the extremely liberal Bernie Sanders, the safe yet controversial Hillary Clinton, and the extremely provocative and politically dividing republican candidate, Donald Trump. With the Bernie Sanders’ push for free college education, the borderline racist philosophies of Donald Trump, and the email scandal which still haunts Hillary Clinton, each candidate has a somewhat controversial past or policy which has created some sort of criticism; this election is turning out to be one of the most dividing yet.

Although all of these candidates have some sort of major support (or else they wouldn’t be in the running), there is still mass disapproval of each candidate as well. Democrats who are in favor of Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton despise the conservative ideals of Donald Trump, while Donald Trump and his immigration-stunting efforts have garnered widespread dislike from both Democrats, and, well, many others.

In order to gauge the political affiliation and opinion of both the youth and the adults, several students and teachers were interviewed. Mr. Sweredoski, a history and lessons of Vietnam teacher, has some insight.

“Trump seems to be attracting a lot of people,” said Sweredoski, “and [he] is definitely a political outsider.  I think Americans may be attracted to him as a backlash to political correctness since the early 90’s. It seems like the whole silent majority thing all over again from Nixon’s run in the late 60’s.”

This echoes the sentiments of many Americans who feel as though Trump’s rise to popularity is fueled by his “genuineness”, and his ability to “say what others are scared to say”. Donald Trump seems to be very controversial in America, and several key missteps in the beginning of his run, such as his insistence of a wall being built to separate America from Mexico to limit the arrival of illegal immigrants, have done nothing to help change his image, and has probably isolated him from people who are independent and are deciding which candidate to give their vote.

Mr. Bliga, another Civics and United States History teacher shares thoughts on this election.

“There doesn’t really seem to be any  qualified candidates,” said Bliga However, he followed up by stating, “ If you want to go with what’s been, you’ve got the vast majority of candidates, if you want to try something different, there is a candidate out there for someone who might want to do that.”

It seems as though many Americans support Trump because he isn’t like the rest of the candidates; he is not a career politician, unlike the vast majority of the rest of the candidates. He spent the majority of his working life as a businessman, growing the vast empire of Trump businesses which America knows well. This history of business, and his inherent ability to appear different than others, has sparked many Americans interest, and it appears he will be in the front running for becoming the primary candidate for the Republican party.

When asking students who they wanted to vote for, we got several mixed reactions. Some seemed slightly biased towards a particular party, while others seemed to think this election was hopeless. Jena Phillips, a senior at Wakefield believes Sanders is the best choice. 

 “ Bernie is really progressive, and I think that he represents a lot of the beliefs of younger people and our new generation, and a lot of things he stands for are problems we are going to face in our lifetime, like education, healthcare and global warming,” said Phillips.  “I think, not just domestically but especially with foreign policy, Trump is not going to be taken seriously be other leaders because of his points and his mindset, and I feel like Bernie Sanders would be a lot more willing to compromise, and I think he would be someone the other countries are willing to deal with.”

This seems to be an opinion shared by many teenagers, who value Bernie Sanders’ outlook on education, social issues, and liberality in other debated areas, such as the legalization of Marijuana. Bernie Sanders embodies the things which many people of the Millenial generation would like to see change within the United States, and his appeal to the younger generations is indisputable.

 While it seems that the two “extreme” candidates for both parties have gained a somewhat remarkable amount of support, the more “traditional” candidates, such as Hillary Clinton, have been getting somewhat looked over. As the youth realizes Sanders’ unlikeliness to win the election, many are beginning to support the next best Democrat, Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton was once more popular than she is now, but due to the email scandal which has been affecting her for a while, many question her trustworthiness and credibility. In America, many see the president as an extension of the American people; having private emails regarding the United States goes against this philosophy, and this fatal mistake was once seen as what would destroy the Clinton campaign. Despite this self imposed adversity, she has bounced back, and is now the Democratic frontrunner.

 This election is looking to be monumental, in both the way it is being held, and the extreme personalities of many of the candidates who are running. It seems as though there is no “right” or “wrong” candidate within this election, rather, it is about picking the candidate with which you are the least unhappy with. Although there will be only one future president of the United States of America, one thing is for sure; with such split opinions regarding who is right for our countries presidency, will be heavily critiqued regardless of their level of success.