Skip to main content

Day 10: Thank you South Carolina

 Day 10: last day. We made it. Ten long days in South Carolina bouncing between Columbia, Aiken, Irmo, Lexington and Charleston. Thank you to our guest speakers who took time out of their busy schedules to come talk to twenty-four eager students. Thank you to the South Carolina Democratic Party (SCDP) for hosting us Democratic interns. Your kindness, generosity, and (southern) hospitality is very appreciated and recognized. Thank you to Randi Doan and Richie Marini for being our incredible supervisors. You were there for any questions we had, kept us going, and continued celebrating what Road to the Whitehouse is all about. Last but most certainly not least, thank you to Dr. Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan. This prestigious, once-in-a-lifetime program would not be possible without you. Thank you for letting me about a part of it and inviting me to be a guest speaker on WUSF with you (WUSF link). I will take everything I have learned with me to my post-graduate studies and career. 

As I go back to St. Pete, Florida, I reflect on how the outcome of the future primaries will look. Will Trump win the majority of the votes? Will the General Election be a repeat of the 2020 cycle? Will we be once again looking to the swing states to determine the future of the presidency for the next four years? Will Georgia go blue once more? So many questions trample my mind and I even think to the 2028 cycle and who may be the potential candidates then. So much uncertainty in the political realm, but what I do know is that South Carolina as first-in-the-nation in the sequential nominating process, has forever changed the future of primaries and caucuses. 

Thank you for coming along with me on this journey and reading my blog. See you soon. 


Virtually yours, Lana Sleiman💞


Black History Month Parade - posted by @aikendemocrats on IG



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Day 2: Democratic Party, Black History Parade, Nikki Haley Bus Stop Tour

 Today we went to the Aiken County Democratic Party to learn more about the county demographics, voter concerns, what motivates citizens to vote, what are the goals of the Democratic Party, and to answer any student questions. Theresa and Pete were really patient and answered all our questions, and offered really great insight. We also were in Aiken for the Black History Month Parade. It was a fantastic time, and our peers, Nathan and Steven, even participated in the parade!  We then went over to Irmo, South Carolina for Nikki Haley's bus stop tour to listen to her speech. It is a grassroots event that is happening around South Carolina to reach local voters to motivate them to get out and vote. Dr. JSM arranged for us to meet and get a picture with Haley after the event. It was definitely interesting to attend an event and listen to a speaker from the Republican Party as someone who has previously always attended and interned for the Democratic Party. I even got interviewed by a U

Welcome to my blog!

Hello everyone and thank you for checking out my blog! My name is Lana Sleiman and I am a senior at USF Tampa majoring in political science with a minor in French and francophone studies. I am excited to take you along with me as I embark on the Road to the Whitehouse internship in South Carolina! I told myself in freshman year of college that I wanted to participate in an internship or job with a presidential campaign by the time it was the end of my senior year, or right after graduation, since I knew I would be graduating in a general election year. Once I learned about this course and the opportunity that it would grant me to intern for the South Carolina Democratic Party, and get hands-on learning experience in a presidential campaign cycle, I knew I had to apply for this course. It was everything I had wanted since freshman year.  I have had other governmental experience such as interning for Florida Democratic Representative Fentrice Driskell of former District 63. I had learned

Day 7: State House tour - Rep Micah Caskey & Rep Mike Neese, last day at the SCDP, & turning SC purple

 We started the morning off with our typical morning seminar and breakfast then headed to the State House! I have been to the Florida Capitol several times but I was so excited to visit South Carolina's. It was absolutely beautiful. The main colors of the rooms, walls, and ceilings were teal and a dark rose. The colors complemented each other so well. The furniture was of wood and navy leather. There was a skylight on the second floor that splits into the Senate Chamber and House of Representatives. The history behind the building was fascinating. It was originally built by slaves, construction was halted, and then it was completed in the early 1900s. Representative Micah Caskey (R) of Lexington County and Representative Mike Neese (R) of Lancaster County spoke to us while we visited the House of Representatives. They were laid-back, answered all of our questions, and had some interesting perspectives to provide during their time as Representatives. For example, for Representative