Mills is hosting an election party on Tuesday, Nov. 6 in celebration of the 2012 presidential election. It will be held in the student union from 5 p.m. to midnight.
Aisha Gonzalez, senior class president, said the senior class council hopes to create a fun, non-partisan environment that brings the Mills community together regardless of their political views. The event is intended to be a chance for everyone to come together and share the excitement of being able to participate in the 2012 presidential election.
“This is about how we’re all here gathering to celebrate democracy as a whole…to celebrate our voice. That goes beyond voting,” Gonzalez said.
Dawna Williams, senior class accountant, said members of the 2013 council started planning the event this past summer. As the number of days before the election day wound down, the members of the senior class wanted to involve the many poli-centric groups on campus. According to Williams, collaboration to plan the event with other civicly-minded groups on campus began in late September. The Feminist Democrats (FemDems), the Roosevelt Institute, a progressive activism group, and Students for Obama are co-hosting the party. Collectively, they voiced their ideas on how to support all dialogues, including students who feel like their political party is not fairly represented on campus.
Dinner will be served at the event, including pizza, wings, sandwiches, baked beans and potato salad. There will be dancing, courtesy of DJ Mark and a live band, Williams said. According to Gonzalez, guessing games, trivia questions, and “minute to win it” games will add to the excitement of finding out the results of the election.
“This is a party! Midterms are over! People are really excited about this election,” Williams said.
Above all, the goal of the event is to celebrate the excitement of voting for the President of the United States, Williams said.
Jillien Davey, a sophomore and president of the FemDems, is excited to finally be old enough to vote for the first time.
“I think voting is a really important thing. Even when I couldn’t vote I was always politically aware. I feel incredible being able to have a say in [the election],” Davey said.
For many, this will be their first presidential election and Williams recognizes the importance of getting young voters feeling excited about taking part in the elections.
“This party is like a reward for doing their part in getting people excited to vote,” Williams said, “we figure if you get them excited about voting, then they will always vote,” Williams said. She wants to make sure people are proud to show off their “I voted” sticker.
Students who plan on attending the event are excited about being a part of the election.
Alexandra Sheppard, a sophomore who bought her ticket in advance said, “I’m pretty excited. I’m a little nervous because I don’t know what the outcome is going to be.”
Williams is particularly excited about the strong culture of civic engagement on campus. She said there have bee strong turn-out numbers for presidential debate screenings throughout the semester.
“We have this great opportunity to celebrate together,” said Williams, “We are a part of history together.”
Tickets will be sold at the door for $3 each.
