A De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) History and Politics student has earned a front-row seat for one of the biggest elections on Earth - the race for the White House.
Natalie Williams has been picked as one of just 45 young people from the UK to be included in the run-up campaigning as the US elects its 45th President in November 2016.
The 20-year-old will then bring her learning and new skills back home to help young people in the UK make a stronger connection with politics.
She said: “It is such a great opportunity. I am so into American politics and this will give me a better insight into how it’s run.”
Natalie won her place through the 45forthe45th project, which encourages young people between 18 and 25 to apply for an opportunity to work on a primary or Presidential campaign of their choice – either Democrat or Republican.
To be selected, the third year had to record herself being interviewed, answering questions such as how being involved would help her make politics more engaging for other young people in Britain. She is currently publicising the project on social media, but when Natalie is in the States she will be watching and participating with campaign organisers.
Not only will this experience help with her studies but she will share her learnings. Natalie said: “I will publicise the whole thing on social media and also compile a report for a conference with the major political parties and offer suggestions on how young people can be more involved with politics.”
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Politics is a subject Natalie is passionate about. She said: “Everyone should have knowledge of politics, because it is everything. Most of politics is history and history is politics.
“One thing that really attracted me to DMU was the US politics modules, where I could actually study specifically on that political system, and also the ability to study a semester in America, which I’ll be doing in a few weeks.
“Also, I think in the US you need a certain kind of confidence that gives you the ability to communicate with completely different mindsets and be able to persuade them that your candidate is the best for the job. My studies have helped me gain that confidence to argue and persuade different groups of people, with hopefully an outside and thus less subjective point of view.”
Dr Clodagh Harrington, Senior Lecturer in Politics, said: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Natalie to take her passion for politics beyond the classroom and obtain a real-world campaign experience in what some would describe as the most exciting election race of all.
“Her hands-on foray into US politics will provide her with a fantastic experience and we will be bursting to hear every detail of the campaign she is working on.”
Posted on Tuesday 22 December 2015