As the tension surrounding the presidential election came to a peak the first week of November, students at CHS took action and took sides, through social media platforms and various other outlets. 

Many students analyze the overall climate of the school to be progressive, and an Inkblot survey of 70 CHS students from Oct. x to Nov. x found that 68.6% of students lean left. 

“I feel that CHS leans left from what I’ve seen,” said senior Matthew Sherwin of Middletown. “A lot of people I talk to have left leaning opinions, and a lot of social media posts I’ve seen confirm that to me.”

“CHS is definitely more left leaning,” said senior Francesca DiMiceli of Middletown in agreement. “You just see that a lot of people in the school have been very open in their support of Biden this past election season and even prior to that have had more left stances on things.”

Seniors Madeline Williams of Wall and Luke Sassa of Aberdeen both also commented on the effect that CHS’s demographic might have on the political climate.

“I definitely think CHS leans more left in terms of political views. I think this is mainly because the CHS population is widely composed of  women and LGBTQ+ individuals, and due to current conservative policies their rights are being jeopardized,” Williams said. 

“Although our school is more socially progressive than others, it really just has to do with creating a culture that supports all kinds of people,” Sassa said. “Until the right side of the aisle becomes more tolerant, many people in our generation feel like they have no choice but to support leftist policies.”

Though the political climate leans left, students with republican or conservative views contribute to the school’s debate culture: healthy debates and conversations, political or not, are commonplace and encouraged, according to sophomore Marina Berger of Marlboro.

“Debating about politics can get a little heated sometimes,” Berger said. 

Sassa confirmed Berger’s statement, adding that before COVID-19, when in-person club activity was more prominent, “our school did a great job of fostering debate through clubs like the JSA and other avenues such as the opinion section of The Inkblot,” he said. “Many of our history classes have also had policy debates, which mostly lead to healthy discourse amongst the student body.”

Some seniors, like DiMiceli, turned eighteen before this November and voted in this year’s presidential election.

“I can vote. I did vote. I feel that it is very important to vote in general, especially this election,” she said. “It’s especially important for our generation because we are the future and we need to lay our stake in what we will be a part of for the rest of our lives.”

While many seniors at CHS this year are still not able to vote, they understand the seriousness of this election and the importance of voting in general. Williams turns eighteen in late November, just missing out on voting in this year’s presidential election. 

“With so many issues at stake, such as the handling of the coronavirus, racial injustice, and women’s rights, I wish that I could express my own views through voting,” Williams said. “I guess I can only hope that those who can vote will use this right wisely.”