Nov. 3 seemed like a fairly normal day on Cornell’s campus: Against a backdrop of gray skies and chilly winds, Cornellians went to class, huddled up in cafes and grabbed food from campus dining halls. Around the country, however, the highly-anticipated, contentious 2020 presidential election unfolds. And most Cornellians have already made their voices heard through absentee or early voting.
The Sun interviewed Cornellians around campus about their voting habits and who they voted for. Here’s what they said.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
Matthew Desimone ’24 (left) and Spencer Katz ’24 (right) casted their first-ever votes in a presidential election for Joe Biden. They plan on watching the election night unfold from the Kay Hall lounge with friends like Talia Sader ’24 (center).
Names: Spencer Katz ’24 and Matthew Desimone ’24
Method of voting: Mail-in ballots for New Jersey and Connecticut, respectively
Voted for: Joe Biden
Reason: Both Katz and Desimone voted for the first time this year. Katz is a registered Democrat who voted for Biden because he wants “restored confidence in the government and to not have this craziness.” Desimone also voted for Biden, in part because of his personal identity: “I’m not a big fan of Trump. I’m Hispanic; he’s kind of racist.”
Katz and Desminoe plan on watching the election unfold in the lounge of Kay Hall with their friends.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
On Donlon’s windows, residents used post-it notes to display messages conveying disapproval of Trump.
Names: Brookes Sleeper ’24 and Pablo Hashem ’24
Method of voting: Mail-in ballots for Connecticut and Long Island, New York, respectively
Voted for: Joe Biden
Reason: Sleeper, who declined to be photographed because he “just rolled out of bed,” cast his vote for Biden because he wants to see a better response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hashem echoed the pandemic along with the issue of reproductive rights as a reason why he voted for Biden.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
The handling of the COVID-19 pandemic was on the minds of Walker Wallace ’24 (left) and Ryan Sheehan ’24 (right) as they cast their votes for Donald Trump. “I’m from Canada,” Rory Graham ’24 said.
Names: Ryan Sheehan ’24 and Walker Wallace ’24
Method of voting: Mail-in ballots for Syracuse, New York, and Virginia, respectively
Voted for: Donald J. Trump
Reason: For a similar reason as Sleeper and Hashem’s, Sheehan voted for Trump because of the pandemic. “I want this pandemic to be over with as soon as possible. It’s starting to drive me insane,” Sheehan said. Wallace agreed.
Both Wallace and Sheehan are first-time voters. “I felt like I actually kept up with everything in the news because I actually had a say,” Wallace said.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
In contrast to Donlon’s post-its, residents displayed a Trump Pence sign in the window of a low rise dorm.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
The choice to vote for Biden was “obvious” for Zainub Malick ’24.
Name: Zainub Malick ’24
Method of voting: Mail-in ballot for Long Island, New York
Voted for: Joe Biden
Reason: For Malick, the choice to vote for Biden was “obvious” — there was “no way” she could vote for Trump “based on the things that he’s done and the things that he’s said.” Citing climate change and health care as a few of her top issues, Malick said she stays in touch with politics. “I think the 2016 presidential election kind of forced you to pay attention,” she said.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
Prof. David Winitsky, near eastern studies, says neither of the candidates align with his progressive, socialist views. Nevertheless, he cast his ballot for Biden in swing state Pennsylvania.
Name: Prof. David Winitsky ’94
Job: Visiting lecturer in the Department of Near Eastern Studies
Method of voting: In-person drop-off ballot in Pennsylvania
Voted for: Joe Biden
Reason: “I’m a really progressive leftist socialist, so there’s not really anyone representing my political opinion,” Winitsky said. He voted via a drop-off ballot in Philadelphia — in a swing state — where he is every weekend, citing competence level as why he picked Biden despite differing politics. “You can share every policy position with the current administration, but they’re not equipped to do the job,” he said.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
Angelina Wang ’22 planned on casting her ballot in-person on election day, but was not yet sure where she would vote.
Name: Angelina Wang ’22
Method of voting: Planned to vote in person
Will vote for: Joe Biden
Reason: Wang, a Long Island native, hadn’t yet voted Tuesday morning. She wasn’t sure what polling station she was voting at either — “I was planning on looking it up” — but she knew she was going to cast her ballot for Joe Biden because she thinks he’s the better candidate.
Hannah Rosenberg / Sun Assistant Photography Editor
Claire Mattox is the assistant coach of the women’s basketball team and has been working on getting student athletes registered to vote with Caroline Nuckolls (not photographed).
Name: Claire Mattox and Caroline Nuckolls
Jobs: Assistant coach, Cornell Women’s Basketball, and director of Women’s Basketball Operations
Method of voting: Absentee ballot in Virginia and in-person early voting, respectively
Voted for: Declined to say as an employee
Reason: Both Mattox and Nuckolls felt that the country was at a moment of change, and said they had worked to use their platform to encourage bipartisan participation. “One of our goals was to try to get the entire student-athlete population registered to vote,” Mattox said. “We’ve had pretty good success with that.”