Two of Baylor’s political groups have big plans to impact the student body and outside Waco community during this election season.
The Young Conservatives of Texas’ Baylor chapter held their first meeting recently. Meanwhile, the Baylor Democrats have also been hard at work on campus.
The Young Conservatives at Baylor intend to volunteer heavily for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign this semester. Some have already begun regular phone banking for him at a local Waco call center.
Being engaged in the grassroots movement for Cruz is only the start of what the Young Conservatives seek to achieve this spring, though.
“We are going to work hard to promote conservative values everywhere across campus this semester,” said Cisco, senior Whitney Mechling , who serves as club president.
That Tuesday night there was lengthy discussion about how their membership could effectively support conservative positions at Baylor moving ahead. Most notably, they talked about campus carry policy and how to continue the fight in favor of it.
Also on their agenda is the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held every year in the Washington, D.C., area. The conference is coming up in early March and multiple members of the group plan to go. CPAC is not the only gathering up ahead for Baylor’s Young Conservative chapter, however. The Young Conservatives of Texas will be preparing for a state convention in April. Should it be the case, Baylor’s committed conservatives active within the club are planning to go.
On the other side, the Baylor Democrats are busy at work and looking to make impact with what they call the C3 Initiative, “Campaign, Community, Campus.” In March, Club members are expecting an official announcement from Bill Mattow in March that he will challenge Republican Bill Flores for his 17th District of Texas, U.S. congressional seat. Democrat students plan to get involved with his race by helping knock on doors, phone call and fund raise.
Within the Waco community, the Baylor Democrats aim to participate with the Citizens for Responsible Lending and McLennan County Democrats on various work projects that they are unsure of at this point. Such plans are being decided at the leadership level.
The college Democrats want to register voters on campus for the upcoming elections and engage with more discussions that define their left-wing positions.
“We have won the battle on the issue of campus carry here,” said sophomore Micah Furlong, president of the club. “We want to keep this momentum to advance our other views at Baylor.” It is also in the club’s interest to have a debate with representatives of the Baylor College Republican group, he said.
With presidential primaries in full swing and hot debate around important issues on campus, both clubs are enthusiastic about boldly promoting their beliefs and growing in size this year at Baylor.
