2016 Election Events: Students, faculty analyze election, march to vote

As we’ve all seen in recent weeks, Florida is once again a major battleground state in the U.S. presidential election. For months, candidates have been making stops throughout South Florida, including here at our FIU.

This week, President Barack Obama will be at MMC campaigning for Hillary Clinton. (This is a campaign event, not an FIU event. Tickets are available to the public at this link.)

Meanwhile, as the election season enters its final days, FIU faculty, staff and students are doing their part to participate in one of the most contentious – and riveting – presidential elections in U.S. history.

To give students a chance to express their views and engage in a dialogue about the candidates, the issues and the implications of this election, the university will host events this week and next led by students and faculty experts in political science, presidential politics and public opinion polling.

All events are free and open to the public. Some will be streamed live via Facebook on www.facebook.com/fiusipa.

To join FIU community members as they analyze and review this historic moment in our nation’s history, check out these events:

• 3:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 3, SIPA 125 – Election Town Hall Meeting co-hosted by the Honors College and the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs. Led by professors Eduardo Gamarra, Dario Moreno, Kevin Evans and Sara Moats, this interactive discussion will cover everything from public opinion polling (including FIU’s Latino Public Opinion Forum, the first university initiative in Florida to track the impact of Hispanic voters on U.S. politics) and the role of the media to allegations of voter fraud and what to expect after the election.

• 1:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 4, DM building – Election Pep Rally and march to the polls hosted by the Honors College. Students will meet outside of DM and walk to the polling station at West Dade Regional Library, 9445 Coral Way, Miami.

• 10 a.m., Wednesday, Nov. 9, MANGO 220 – Post-Election Analysis with FIU faculty experts and national leaders, hosted by the Green School and FIU in D.C. FIU faculty will join national leaders via Skype for a discussion about what happens next and what the impact of the results might be for the United States and others in the world. Will allegations of fraud impact the peaceful transfer of power? What changes might we see in immigration policy or foreign relations? What impact will this election have on the two-party system in the United States?

On election night, Tuesday, Nov. 8., make sure to watch our FIU experts on TV as they analyze the election results. You can expect to see Brian Fonseca, director of the Jack D. Gordon Institute on WSVN Channel 7; Professor Eduardo Gamarra of the Latino Public Opinion Forum on WTVJ Channel 6; Randy Pestana, policy analyst at the Gordon Institute on WFOR Channel 4; and FIU College of Law Professor Jose Gabilondo on Telemundo Network. Several FIU students have also been invited to appear on Telemundo 51 and Telemundo Network. Tune in!