Members of the University of Minnesota’s Undergraduate Political Science Association (UPSA) and College Democrats aim to connect students with similar political interests or aspirations.
UPSA is a nonpartisan organization whose goal is to bring together students majoring in or interested in political science. UMN College Democrats is an official branch of the Democratic party at the University.
Shae Horning, vice president of UPSA, said although the club’s name is Undergraduate Political Science Association, it is for everyone.
“It’s really just a chance for people that have the same interests in politics and government,” Horning said. “And to have a space to meet people that have the same interests and get a chance to talk about it.”
The Association tries to meet every other week, with many of their meetings focusing on professional development.
“Our first meeting this year was an internship panel,” Horning said. “So we had students that had already had internships come to talk about their experience and how they got them.”
UPSA also tries to hold a few bigger events in addition to regular meetings, Horning said. In spring 2024, one of the group’s big events was a Women in Politics Panel with a variety of notable women who made a career in politics, ranging from a former U.S. Senate representative to legislative assistants.
Along with professional and speaker events, the Association also tries to have fun events, including a de-stress event during finals.
As a third-year student this year, Horning said UPSA has been a part of her college experience since she first started at the University. Horning joined the association her first year and applied to be on its board right away.
“I ended up starting as one of our communications directors, and that was really fun,” Horning said. “It was cool to just jump right in and see the organization from the perspective of a board member.”
The University’s College Democrats club has been present at the University for around 60 years, said club Vice President Lexi Cornolo. However, it was not running during COVID-19 or in the years since.
That was before Cornolo and President Kavya Nair revived it.
Both Cornolo and Nair were part of Minnesota Youth DFL and realized the lack of club presence at the University was a big deal, said Cornolo. Because she was the Director of Advocacy for the Minnesota Youth DFL, they asked her to get the club running again.
“I feel very passionate about the club existing on campus in general,” Cornolo said. “Just to be a space for people who just want to learn more about politics.”
The club’s first meeting was on Oct. 16 and included guest speakers such as Minnesota Representative Mohamud Noor, U.S. Senator Tina Smith and Florida Congressman Maxwell Frost. In the future, the club will have more workshops and speakers, aiming to get students involved in politics.
As of right now, the main priority of the club is the national election as well as local elections.
“College Democrats is passionate about having workshops, helping people with resumes, helping people network outside of their usual self, canvassing, anything that has anything to do with just getting involved,” Cornolo said.