BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — With just two weeks left before Election Day, CBS 42 News decided to visit a Samford University political science class.
We last spoke with Professor Fred Shepherd's class before September's debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. The students we spoke on Tuesday morning with have done their homework on the candidates and shared with us what issues matter to them.
Sophomore Hannah Hellmann is still deciding who she’ll cast her ballot for on Nov. 5.
“Foreign policy is a very big factor in determining who I’m going to vote for just with everything happening in Ukraine, and Russia and the Middle East," Hellmann, an international relations major, said.
Her classmate Grace Estes, who is registered to vote in Tennessee, said she plans to vote for former President Donald Trump.
“Picking a presidential candidate, ensuring that they represent and acknowledge small farmers, but also too business owners and are able to keep the economy in a good and stable place," Estes said.
Delaney Laing, who is registered in Florida, said she plans to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I think right now what’s coming up the most for me is after the two hurricanes, environmental policy and protection and social policy and how we’re able to help people after disasters like that," Laing said.
Professor Shepherd took time to speak on what factors are still in play just two weeks out before the election.
“You have a very, very small percentage that is undecided, so those are worth pursuing, but I think it’s really very much now about mobilization and who’s going to turn out," he said.
He added that there are strong feelings on both sides, so he believes turnout will be high.
We also stopped by a popular downtown park in the city of Homewood on Tuesday, where we met Nash Harrington who has two children under three years of age. He said he’s focused on the economy and the price of groceries.
“Groceries are a big struggle when you have two kids to feed," Harrington said. "We used to spend $200 to $300, now it's $400 to $500 a month and that’s a big struggle when you have car notes, house notes and things like that.”
Harrington said he’s a Republican and will be voting for Donald Trump.
Chelseia Simms, who has a young daughter, said she plans to vote for Kamala Harris. She said her biggest concerns as a parent are education and safety, especially amid gun violence in Birmingham.
“We have so much going on in the city of Birmingham right now and I feel like we need to be very safe with our children," Simms said. "And just as we’re here right now, I think the safety is very important.”
Jefferson County Board of Registrars Chairman Barry Stephenson said there are 501,300 voters registered to vote, topping the number registered back in 2020 by 3,950 voters.