Day 3: Climate Hall

We started off with an early day at the NH Youth Climate Summit. Every presidential candidate was either speaking in person or had a surrogate speak in their place because of the impeachment vote in the Senate. Students from the state were able to ask each candidate a few questions. We first got to hear from Senator Amy Klobuchar, who I personally was very excited to hear from since I haven't heard much from her in the news. Personally, I am a pretty undecided voter, so I loved the opportunity to hear from all the candidates.

Obligatory USF group picture with Sen. Klobuchar! 

After this, we headed back to the State House to meet Secretary of State Bill Gardener. He is the longest currently serving Secretary of State in the US. Since 1976, he has met every single presidential candidate.  He also is a strong proponent of New Hampshire's first in the nation status and has done a lot to ensure it stays in place. He had a lot of insight and knowledge into our political system and is clearly so wise. I could listen to his stories for hours. 

After this, we headed over to the Executive Council meeting. This meeting included NH Governor Chris Sununu and the Councilmembers, one of which is a USF alumnus! The Governor was so welcoming and kind towards us. Councilmembers Deb Pignatelli (D), Russell Prescott (R), & Andru Valinsky (D) took the time to personally speak with us and tell us about their unique roles that a lot of state governments don't have. 

After our time at the State House, we headed over to the New Hampshire Democratic Party HQ. The Party Chairman Raymond Buckley took the time to speak to us about the party's structure within the state. I loved learning how a different state party functions differently than Florida's. Having worked with FDP, it was great to hear how New Hampshire differs. Again, there was SO much political memorabilia in this office and let me tell you... I WAS IN LOVE. I literally wanted to move in. 

An insta-worthy office. 

Some 'vintage' Hillary Clinton buttons.

Raymond Buckley speaking with our class. 

Buckle up, the day is not yet finished! We quite literally ran back to the NH Youth Climate Change Town Hall to catch just a quick glimpse of Andrew Yang speaking. While we only caught the last few minutes, I was so excited because I was really interested in hearing more of Yang's policy besides Universal Basic Income, which has flooded the media.


After Yang, Tom Steyer was up. Before this, I really had little to no opinion on Steyer. I knew he was a billionaire with a history of helping the climate. I also knew he founded NextGen, which focused on youth voter activism. I was really pleasantly surprised to hear how the climate was his #1 priority. He was so passionate and you could hear in his voice how personally he took this issue. Rebecca and I also got to speak about our experience out in the hall to some of his team.

One thing New Hampshire is so lucky to get is the ability to have an open mind about every candidate. Bernie is treated the same as Yang or Steyer, even though their numbers are not near his. n one day, we had the opportunity to see nearly every presidential candidate speak, which no other state gets. This allows the voter to keep an open mind and really have a personal connection to the candidate they want to support.