Both undecided and staunchly partisan students navigated the rooms of Silsby Hall and the Rockefeller Center during a campaign meet and greet on Tuesday afternoon. Campaign volunteers and managers from all eight of the debating Republican presidential candidate's campaigns shared the political ideologies and action plans of their respective candidates at the event, which was sponsored by the Rockefeller Center.
Students at the meet and greet which was closed to members of the national media expressed a desire to familiarize themselves with the candidates' policies, and several voiced frustration that none of the candidates attended the event.
Griffin Perry, the son of Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas, and Kerry Marsh, New Hampshire state director for Perry's campaign, represented Perry in Rockefeller 3 and fielded questions from students. The event was "good for outreach and to get Dartmouth students involved with the campaign," Griffin Perry said.
Marsh and Griffin Perry both said they thought the event served as a resource for students interested in politics and in further involvement with the Perry campaign.
"Any time there's an event on campus, it's a great opportunity for the candidates to engage with students and for students to see the process," Griffin Perry said.
Some students, however, were disappointed by the lack of outreach from the candidates themselves.
"I think this is great publicity for Dartmouth, but there's a lot less access for students to the candidates than I'd hoped," Kevin Griffith '14 said.
The campaign representatives present at the event were "not very eloquent" overall and did not sway Griffith an undecided voter in any direction, he said.
Among the students who attended the meet and greet, views on the candidates ranged from indecision to curiosity to firm opposition.
Max Weiner '15 said he came to see the process rather than support any one candidate's campaign.
"I'm a liberal so I'm opposed to Perry and his policies," Weiner said. "It's a great event to learn about the opposition to Obama."
Jennifer Davidson '15 also self-identified as "a pretty steady Democrat," but said she wanted to become more familiar with the Republican candidates.
Philippa Martinez-Berrier '14 said she attended the meet and greet "out of curiosity" and does not support any particular candidate's campaign.
Other attendees, like registered Republican Kaitlin Maier '14, said she hoped to become better informed and "make an educated vote in the primaries."
David Hildebrand '13 said that while he does not consider himself very politically active, the opportunity to meet members of each campaign in person was exciting.
The relatively peaceful event was interrupted at 4:45 p.m., when a group of approximately 20 students from the Dartmouth chapter of the Student Global AIDS Campaign entered the Rockefeller Center chanting "The GOP can end HIV," while holding posters and wearing yellow T-shirts advertising their cause.
The group was not protesting the event, according to group leader Eva Xiao '14. Protestors instead hoped to raise awareness surrounding the cause and encourage Republican candidates to increase funding for AIDS prevention and treatment research.
Xiao said the cause is not a partisan issue.
"We would be doing the same thing if this were a Democratic debate," she said.
Since many Dartmouth students tend not to be very politically active, the debate brought out students' often hidden "political side," Griffith said. Given Dartmouth's lack of political involvement compared to other schools, the mostly-disinterested student body is almost "undeserving" of hosting such a major political event, Reed Wommack '14, who attended the meet and greet, said. "Honestly, as a campus we are too politically apathetic to appreciate the significance of this opportunity," Wommack said, citing the relatively low number of student protestors organizing on the Green. "Protestors could have gotten national publicity here and we should have had more both informal and formal discussions going on among students."
Wommack said he attributes this alleged apathy to students' sense that they are isolated from politics, and to their exaggerated concern with "upcoming midterms" or "last night's party."
Other students said being on campus during the debate inspired them to become more aware of pressing political issues.
"I think this is a wonderful experience and I think it's amazing that we have this opportunity to interact with the campaigns," Maria Cristina '14, who attended the event, said. "Having their presence on campus has made me more politically engaged and talking about the specifics of their policies."
Having high-profile politicians visit such a rural campus is a unique opportunity, according to Davidson.
"I think it's awesome that we're being given such a great opportunity to get involved with the political process," Davidson said. "We go to school in the middle of nowhere so it's nice to actually have something going on here."
Staff writer Felicia Schwartz contributed reporting.
