There are moments in time, where one must stop and ask, “Am I ever going to be able to do this again?” That is the question I tried to remember this past week, when I when I found myself submerged in the processes of American democracy in a historical presidential election. 

As a student journalist, this past week was momentous. It was an incredibly educational experience; not to mention energizing, and unforgettable. This is what the past seven days entailed for me. Seven days ago, on Super Tuesday, I left Seattle for the Kootenai County democratic caucus in Idaho, with UW professor, David Domke, and five other classmates. We got back to Seattle on Wednesday, and went straight to class at the University of Washington. On Thursday night, my persistence paid off, and I was able to gain press access to Hillary Clinton’s rally at Pier 30 in Seattle. On Friday, my professor secured press access for myself and several classmates to Barack Obama’s event at Key Arena in Seattle. On Saturday, it was Washington’s caucuses, and I divided my time between a South Seattle GOP caucus and democratic caucus. On Sunday, I received a phone call from local news radio requesting an interview about an incident that occurred at the GOP caucus involving myself, a classmate, and the GOP Legislative Chair. I was happy to do the interview, along with my classmate, and it was taped on Sunday at the radio stations studio in Seattle. Yesterday morning, I heard the interview over the radio, and again on a recording that my professor played in class. Today, I am taking the time to reflect on it all.

After arriving in Idaho, with five minutes to spare before the caucus closed it’s doors, I was able to talk with several people, including caucus organizers, and attendees, which was valuable on the job training for a student studying journalism. But the educational experience for myself, went beyond journalism, it crossed a line by awakening awareness in myself, about the urgency and significance of this historical election. After talking with people, I began to realize this election is personal to many Americans. My classmates and I spoke with Chief Allen of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe in Idaho, who was there caucusing for his first time for Obama, whom he said best represented the interests of the tribe. I also spoke with former Idaho State Senator, and Clinton supporter, Mary Lou Reed, who told me about when the state went Republican, and how she believes now is the time for the “pendulum to swing back a little bit.” One attendee described the feeling in the gymnasium that night as “electric” and I must say, I have to agree with them.

Attending both the Clinton rally, and the Obama rally, was a memorable experience. I talked with two women who called themselves lifelong Hillary supporters, and described themselves as “political war horses.” Two people I interviewed after the Obama event, compared him to “Bobby” Kennedy. One young Obama supporter, who was from Ethiopia, told me he got his citizenship last month, just so he could caucus for Obama. Both events were impressive. But the great turnout at Obamas event, was overwhelming, I didn’t expect 21,000 people to gather in and around Key Arena, to hear him speak. The crowd was, “fired up.” I appreciated interacting with people and talking with them about the issues they felt were most important. Talking with people at the caucuses and at the rallies, has given me a new understanding about why record numbers of people are taking action so much earlier in this election than in years past.

The Washington Caucuses on Saturday had records turnouts as well, which was no surprise. I was able to attend part of a GOP caucus in South Seattle, and part of a democratic caucus in the same district. The GOP caucus I attended with a classmate at the Seattle Public Library’s Columbia Branch started out quite interesting. The Legislative District chair did not want us there, and he asked us to leave. He called us “liberal journalism students” and it took the local sheriff reminding him that we were allowed there, for him to finally allow us in. He did get an apology in before I left. To compare, the scene was much calmer at the GOP caucus, than at the democratic caucus. I wasn’t expecting that much of a difference between the two, but there were apparent differences. At the GOP, many were seated in chairs and spoke calmly amongst themselves. Whereas at the democratic caucus, people wandered around and there was a fair amount of shouting going on. I liked seeing the steps of the caucus process unfold before my eyes, and speaking with attendees continued to further my understanding of the process.