At the same time, college students constitute a significant voting bloc with the potential ability to swing the election in either direction. In 2022, the Michigan Department of Education reported Michigan’s total college enrollment to be 487,548. That population is more than triple Joe Biden’s margin of victory in Michigan during the 2020 election.

How students ultimately decide to vote, then, could have an immense effect on the outcome of the election.

Kinesiology sophomore Cal Handyside said he plans on voting and has spent time trying to “get through” to his roommate who believes their vote doesn’t matter. Handyside said that beyond his interest in defending abortion rights and preserving the Affordable Care Act, he’s motivated to vote because of Trump’s increasingly extreme rhetoric surrounding immigration.

“When Donald Trump says immigrants are poisoning the blood of America, that is quite literally Nazi rhetoric,” Handyside said, referencing Trump’s comments at a rally in 2023. “Hitler said that. That’s shocking that he has been allowed to have that kind of platform.”

For kinesiology freshman Thomas Kelly, who is planning on voting in his home state of Massachusetts, immigration represents one issue that is pushing him to vote for Trump “at this moment.”

“(Massachusetts) holds a lot of immigrants, and I think that’s kind of an issue, especially in the country,” Kelly said. “There have been killings, assaults and stuff. So that’s one issue I’m addressing.”

Throughout the campaign, Trump and other Republicans have highlighted violent murders and assaults committed by undocumented immigrants to attack Biden and Harris for being too soft on crime and illegal immigration. However, national data has indicated that there is little to no connection between immigration and crime rates.

Kelly did criticize Trump for his “high ego,” and reliance on name value, something Kelly said has caused him to make irresponsible comments in person and online.

“I think he talks too much,” Kelly said. “I think he’s too loud and he makes himself look like an idiot. It reflects poorly on our country.”

Communicative sciences and disorders sophomore Eliza Van Ee said she plans on voting for Harris because “she cares about people,” and fears that a second Trump presidency would limit her rights, as a bisexual woman, to “be with who I want to be.” Van Ee also pointed to Trump’s status as a convicted felon and his rhetoric around women of color as factors that turn her away from voting for him.

“The way he talks about women, I don’t like the way he talks about people of color, and he wants to make the rich richer,” Van Ee said. “He doesn’t care about creating a more harmonious country.”

Since Harris replaced Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket in July, one issue she has consistently struggled with, particularly with young people, is the current administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. In the spring, over 100,000 people voted uncommitted in the Michigan Democratic primary as a protest against Biden’s ongoing support of Israel and some activists are still deciding whether to withhold their vote as an additional protest.

Although finance sophomore Judy Fayed’s non-citizen status makes her ineligible to vote, she expressed sympathy with those who are vehemently against Trump but cannot bring themselves to vote for Harris. Fayed said that Harris’ commitment to supplying Israel with weapons is incompatible with her simultaneous promise to address Palestinians’ suffering.

“I’m literally Arab and it sucks to see your own people getting murdered every day and there’s nothing you can do about it,” Fayed said. “For them to be like ‘Yeah, we’re gonna keep doing that’ and then doing the whole ‘Oh, we’re gonna give aid’ bit. Guys, just shut up.”

Noting that “the bar is in Hell,” however, Fayed also said she understands those who choose to vote for Harris in order to prevent Trump from being elected.

When polls close next Tuesday, it’s entirely possible that the winner of the election may not be clear until days later. For students whose phones, emails and televisions have been inundated with political messaging, Nov. 5 will, at least, represent the end to a long and arduous election season.

“I realize the importance of (voting), but my entire feed is just ‘this politician did this, this politician does this,'” Handyside said. “It’s a little bit straining.”