Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke was practically unknown when he challenged Rep. Ted Cruz of Texas for Senate in 2018.
After a narrow loss that sent shockwaves around the country, O’Rourke is now fighting to gain traction in his bid for the 2020 Democratic Party presidential nomination.
The latest Washington Post-ABC News Poll shows support for O’Rourke at a mere 3 percent.
“Winning this election will be about bringing everyone in and going everywhere to find solutions to our country’s greatest challenges,” Aleigha Cavalier, National Press Secretary for Beto O’Rourke, told The Bona Venture.
As O’Rourke fights to stay relevant in his bid for the White House, he’s turned to millennials and Generation Z, who according to the Pew Research Center will make up 37 percent of eligible voters.
In an effort to tap into those eligible voters, visiting college campuses has become a prominent fixture of O’Rourke’s campaign.
“Young people, especially students, are leading the movements to address gun violence, climate change and the student loan crisis,” Cavalier said.
According to Cavalier, O’Rourke recognizes the importance of student voices in what his campaign is calling a “moment of truth for our democracy.”
One of the most discussed issues on college campuses and at schools is the epidemic of gun violence. O’Rourke has released the most ambitious plan of any 2020 presidential candidate to reduce gun violence, according to his campaign.
His plan would create a nationwide gun licensing system and registry, require universal background checks and implement a mandatory buyback program for assault weapons.
O’Rourke’s campaign has made it clear that the mandatory buyback of assault weapons deserves more attention.
“This is the only way to ensure these weapons of war are out of our communities,” Cavalier explained.
The former congressman canceled a series of campaign events in August after a mass shooting shook his hometown of El Paso, Texas. Since then, his campaign has made gun legislation its focus.
O’Rourke has also created a push for student debt relief. His plan would streamline and expand public service loan-forgiveness, enabling those working in public service to have 10 percent of their debt forgiven for each year served, according to his campaign.
For students at institutions like St. Bonaventure University, O’Rourke’s plan calls for the allowance of borrowers with high interest rate private loan debt to refinance at lower federal interest rate levels.
The fourth Democratic primary debate will take place Oct. 15, and possibly Oct. 16., and will be co-hosted by the New York Times and CNN.
By Sean Mickey, Sports Assignment Editor
mickeys17@bonaventure.edu
