With the presidential elections right around the corner and people debating back and forth about who’s the best candidate to vote for, it’s only appropriate to bring up more political talk. Many young people are liberal. Even more so when they’re young, educated people – college students. 60 percent of 18 – 29 year olds supported Obama in 2012, compared to the 36 percent that supported Romney, just for reference. Being a Republican in a college town means being the minority group. As a new college student, it can be difficult and overwhelming at times to be only one of a few to have a different opinion or viewpoint than the masses. These are some common occurrences.

“F**k Trump, if he’s the next President, I’m moving out of America.”

It’s not like I agree with every word that comes out of the man’s mouth either, but he’s not exactly Satan. I’m also not running around talking about how if Hillary Clinton is voted into office, I’m running for the hills and not coming back for at least four years. We’ve all survived this far with presidents we haven’t seen eye to eye with.

“Don’t you want free college?"

Sure, the idea of getting out of college debt free sounds appealing. But college isn’t “free,” somebody’s paying for it. If it’s not you, it’s somebody else. That somebody else will eventually be you when you start paying taxes after college. You’ll just be paying for someone else’s college. I’d also like to keep the merit of a degree so I don’t have to go get a Masters and Doctorate.

“So what, you’re against gays?”

No, I can actually be a Republican without wanting to convert all gay people to straight. I have friends and relatives who are gay and I absolutely love them. Their lives, their relationships. I don’t mind who they choose to date and marry.

“I guess you want to deport everyone who’s not a citizen too right?”

I have seen the hard work of many Mexicans. They have rushed food orders to an expo window on some of the busiest nights I’ve worked at a restaurant. They have worked tireless hours in the heat at the barn where my horses board. I have seen many of them send money back home to their families in Mexico; money they spent hours upon hours making. No I don’t hate everyone who’s come to America pursuing a better life. I do however, care about our country’s well-being. Making a more secure border is merely to protect our people from disease and groups like ISIS. There’s no harm in that is there?

“You’re a woman, don’t you care about your rights?”

Yes, I obviously care about how well I’m going to do at a job in a few years and I care about equality and all of those things. Is it the number one priority of mine to vote for someone based solely on this alone? No. I care about myself and all other women out there, don’t get me wrong. But there are matters I’d rather focus my attention on. Hopefully in time that’s just one more issue we can address with both parties coming to an agreement but for now, it’s not the reason I’d like to specifically vote for a candidate.

“I suppose you’re pro-life?”

I’m pro-life not because of politics, but because I’m religious. That’s something I have chosen to stand by. This doesn’t mean that I’m not compassionate towards those who need abortions. Rape, incest and the life of the mother are all reasons in which an abortion would be necessary. I won’t go much further into that, but yes I do understand there are exceptions to the rules.

Having different points of view are what make up our world and what makes us all unique. Nobody is wrong to have their opinions and everybody could learn a little something from somebody else. There are sometimes platforms that I agree with more from liberals than conservatives. I’ll happily be a Republican and let others happily be Democrats. That’s okay. Being a college student can make this difficult often times and having my opinions can sometimes get a rise out of others who don’t agree. I’ll continue to stand by my views and let others do the same.