Former President Bill Clinton speaking at FAMU to advocate for his wife, Hillary Clinton
Courtesy of Yulita Howard
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton’s arrival to Florida A&M University Monday morning energized local residents as he made his way toward the stage in the Hansel Tookes Student Recreation Center.
Tallahassee residents and students filled the Hansel Tookes Student Recreation Center, at FAMU for the “Get Out the Vote Rally.”
Clinton came to encourage students to cast their votes Tuesday for his wife, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, for the primary. Voting for Secretary Clinton, he said, was important for two reasons because students’ futures are at stake, but he also expressed why she would make a great president.
“Hillary wants this election to be about your future. It ought to be about taking responsibility for empowering everybody to succeed in America,” Bill Clinton said.
The former president reflected and expounded on key points Hillary Clinton is fighting to achieve, such as: equal pay opportunities, affordable healthcare, tuition, gun laws and more.
Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, a proud Clinton supporter, expressed his excitement for Hillary Clinton’s presidency.
“I am overwhelmingly excited about the moment we get to call her madam president,” Gillum said. “I’m excited about her becoming the next president of the United States not only so that she can further Barack Obama’s agenda of the last eight years, but also build on that agenda to make this country worthy of your children’s talents and your talents."
Although many students were excited to see former president Clinton speak on behalf of his wife’s candidacy, many students are still unsure about who they believe is fit to lead this country.
Niko Jones, a fourth-year FAMU history student from Miami wanted to see first hand what Clinton has to offer before casting his vote.
“I’m pretty ignorant on what she’s talking about, so I want to understand it before I make my decision on who I want to vote,” Jones said. “Social media is controlling us and nobody goes out there to see what’s going on.”
Alexandra Mclaughlin, an alumnus of Florida State University and a part-time server who graduated with a political science degree, is still looking for an employment opportunity.
She wanted to see what incentives Secretary Clinton has in place for post-grad students.
“I’m looking for her to talk about more job creation. As a recent graduate, I can’t find a full-time job, that’s pretty frustrating,” Mclaughlin said.
Morgan Mitchell, a student at Tallahassee Community College, is no foreigner when it comes to politics. As a former volunteer in the Obama presidential campaign, she explained her admiration for the Clintons.
“I admire the Clintons because they’re preaching racial equality and equality among both genders and because they are not intent on taking away people’s rights. People’s rights are very important,” said Mitchell.
Florida voting took place on Tuesday, March 15. Hillary Clinton won Florida with 64.48 percent of the votes with 95.94 percent reporting. Donald Trump won Florida on behalf of the Republicans with 45.74 percent of the votes with 96.73 percent reporting.