“Thank you. Iowa, thank you.”

“Wow. What a night, an unbelievable night.”

“God bless the great state of Iowa.” This is how Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton and Ted Cruz began their speeches to respective cheers after the Iowa Caucus.

This year’s presidential election is the first election in which I am able to take part. I know that my single vote will not change the course of American history, but I am still trying to pay attention to the campaigns so that I will be able to make a well informed decision. Needless to say, I had several news sources open on both my smartphone and laptop last Monday, and I’m not the only one.

Chris Slagell, a junior, is excited about being able to vote in this year’s election.

“I feel like it’s very important to participate especially considering I’ll be turning 18 just before the election. This is the first time I’ll be able to put my input into this country and say what I want to say and actually give my opinion. The fact that that opinion could matter means a lot as a young individual,” Slagell said. “I feel that besides whatever media says or whatever the general populus says, it’s interesting taking it all in for the first time. It provides a different perspective than what it has in the past.”

Senior Kobe Van Someren thinks it is important for young people to inform themselves.

“I think it’s important to be a young person who votes, because many young people don’t. I think people our age should do some research to figure out their viewpoints and not just follow what their parents believe. It’s important to learn each party’s’ beliefs and which ones you agree with,” he asserted.

Nathan Methvin, a senior who is actively involved with MSMS’ political organizations, finds this year’s campaign season fascinating.

“I think it’s incredible how this election is being followed like a sports game. People are watching it for entertainment and not to find out information about who will be the next person running our country,” he said.

During campaign season, the Iowa Caucus is always in the headlines, but why? Iowa accounts for only one percent of delegates at the national convention, so why focus on it? Many experts believe the Iowa Caucus can show how weak or strong a candidate is in the race. If this is true, than this year’s Iowa Caucus is one for the books. Prior to this caucus, it was believed (or worried) that Trump would take the Republican nomination, but he finished second following Cruz by 3.3%. Prior to this caucus, it was believed that Clinton easily win the nomination, but the gap between her and Sanders was only 0.3%.

All of this information coming from multiple news sources can get rather confusing, so in order to help you make your decision, I will leave you with information about a few candidates straight from their websites.

Bernie Sanders (D)

“Bernie Sanders is a Democratic candidate for President of the United States. In 2006, he was elected to the U.S. Senate after 16 years as Vermont’s sole congressman in the House of Representatives. Bernie is now serving his second term in the U.S. Senate after winning re-election in 2012 with 71 percent of the vote. Under his administration, the city made major strides in affordable housing, progressive taxation, environmental protection, child care, women’s rights, youth programs and the arts. In Congress, Bernie has fought tirelessly for working families, focusing on the shrinking middle class and growing gap between the rich and everyone else. Bernie has been called a “practical and successful legislator” and he was dubbed the “amendment king” in the House of Representatives for passing more amendments than any other member of Congress. As chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, Bernie worked across the aisle to “bridge Washington’s toxic partisan divide and cut one of the most significant deals in years.” In 2015, Democratic leadership tapped Bernie to serve as the caucus’ ranking member on the Senate Budget Committee.” – berniesanders.com/about

Hillary Clinton (D)

“Hillary Clinton has served as secretary of state, senator from New York, first lady of the United States, first lady of Arkansas, a practicing lawyer and law professor, activist, and volunteer—but the first thing her friends and family will tell you is that she’s never forgotten where she came from or who she’s been fighting. In 2008, Hillary ran for president. When she came up short, she gave a powerful speech thanking her supporters and threw her support behind then-Senator Barack Obama. She campaigned hard to make sure there was a Democrat in the White House. And when President Obama asked Hillary to serve as his secretary of state, she put aside their hard-fought campaign and answered the call to public service once again. She built a coalition for tough new sanctions against Iran that brought them to the negotiating table and she brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that ended a war and protected Israel’s security. She was a forceful champion for human rights, internet freedom, and rights and opportunities for women and girls, LGBT people, and young people all around the globe.” – hillaryclinton.com/about/bio/

Ted Cruz (R)

“Throughout his entire life, Ted Cruz has proven to be a passionate and effective fighter for limited government, economic growth, and the Constitution. As Solicitor General for the State of Texas and in private practice, Ted authored more than 80 U.S. Supreme Court briefs and argued 43 oral arguments, including nine before the U.S. Supreme Court, and has won an unprecedented series of landmark national victories including defending U.S. sovereignty against the UN and the World Court in Medellin v. Texas, defending our Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, defending the constitutionality of the Ten Commandments monument at the Texas State Capitol and the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. In the U.S. Senate, Ted has led the fight to repeal Obamacare, to stop President Obama’s illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty, and to defend life, marriage, the First Amendment, the Second Amendment, and our entire Bill of Rights. Ted has proven to be the exact type of courageous conservative we need to reignite the promise of America, restore our Constitution, and defend the values we all hold dear.” – www.tedcruz.org/about/

Donald Trump

“Donald J. Trump is the very definition of the American success story, continually setting the standards of excellence while expanding his interests in real estate, sports and entertainment. He is a graduate of the Wharton School of Finance. Mr. Trump has authored over fifteen bestsellers, and his first book, The Art of the Deal, is considered a business classic and one of the most successful business books of all time. In 1995, the 50th anniversary of World War II, only 100 spectators watched New York City’s Veteran Day Parade. Approached by Mayor Rudy Giuliani and the chief of New York City’s FBI office, Mr. Trump agreed to lead as Grand Marshall a second parade later that year. Mr. Trump made a $1 million matching donation to finance the Nation’s Day Parade. On Saturday, November 11th, over 1.4 million watched as Mr. Trump marched down Fifth Avenue with more than 25,000 veterans, some dressed in their vintage uniforms. A month later, Mr. Trump was honored in the Pentagon during a lunch with the Secretary of Defense and the entire Joint Chiefs of Staff.” – donaldjtrump.com/about/