Voting for the First Time During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Since about 2016, I have been anticipating 2020, if for nothing else than for the ability to vote for the first time in a presidential election. I wasn’t old enough in the last one, but being surrounded by all the news it caused encouraged me to prepare for when I could register. I’ve been spending the last couple years becoming more educated on politics, forming my own opinions as unbiased as I could. I especially focused the past couple months on forming my opinions using (supposed) reliable sources on the 2020 candidates, and I thought I was set.

However, COVID-19 changed things. I don’t know if it’s the sudden influx of news I see on my social media timelines about the pandemic or simply because I now have way too much time with literally nothing better to do than to go on social media, but I’ve recently realized that I cannot make informed opinions and decisions based on the first “news” I see each day on Facebook or Twitter, as I’d been inclined to do.

Of course, “fake news” isn’t a new concept, but it’s become not only more prevalent during this pandemic, but also more dangerous, as one incorrect article can lead people to make decisions that can affect their lives and the lives of others. The World Health Organization even has had to add an entire MythBusters section to their coronavirus pages!

There are even lessons on news literacy designed specifically for coronavirus. In order to overcome information overload, the overwhelming speed at which news changes, and the limits of our own biases, they recommend things such as slowing down and being cognizant of emotions. However, Dr. Ed Simpson, a professor in the CMU Journalism Department, explains that most people are too lazy or have lives that are too fast-paced to fact check every single thing that comes across the 11 hours of media we consume daily (me included), making news literacy quite a challenge.

Still, as I work on developing my news literacy, I am becoming more and more nervous about voting this November. How can I make the best, most educated decision possible in the midst of the pandemic and fake news? I’m still trying to figure that out.

To add fuel to the fire, there are already so many issues that are incredibly important to consider for the candidates, but unfortunately many have been pushed into the shadows by COVID-19, making it even more difficult to stay knowledgeable. And, of course, our president participating in the fake and misleading news doesn’t help, either. 

I’ve realized that there is a lot at stake in this election, more than I originally thought pre- coronavirus. However, before now, I’d never considered how specifically higher education, a $500 billion industry, will respond to a pandemic until Dr. Frim Ampaw, a CMU higher education scholar, brought it up. More personally for my education interests: how will veterinary schools respond? 

One of the biggest and most consistent sources of stress for me over the past few years has been my future application to veterinary school. Vet school admissions are very competitive, and even after getting in, it leaves most people with incredible debt and a relatively meager salary. Even with reliable sources keeping me up to date on this rather niche topic, my anxiety builds as this pandemic gets worse. The more public funding decreases, the higher tuition rises, and the ability of states to fund higher education is reduced after this pandemic and likely recession. Also, will institutions be forced to raise costs even more due to the lower enrollment likely to follow? The worst part is that it’s very difficult to predict. As Dr. Ampaw notes, nothing in history has affected all of the schools in the country at once before, especially not a pandemic and recession at the same time.

This all comes back to who is elected as president next. Will they be knowledgeable, compassionate, and willing to support the end of the pandemic as well as the inevitable difficulties and worries to follow? Because higher education holds such an importance in America, affecting 20 million students, 3 million employees, and pretty much every other industry (according to Dr. Ampaw), I want to vote for a president who will competently support it. In order to do this, however, it is imperative that I, as well as the millions of others affected, can access reliable news while still maintaining our mental health and juggling everything else that we have going on. And I think finding that balance is what will be one of the hardest challenges in getting through this pandemic and election year.