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Culture > News

Vote Smarter: Issues to Know and Questions to Ask

Sydney Winters
Lauren Leija
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UTSA chapter.

 

It’s not enough to just vote early…you have to vote smart, too! Here are some issue topics to know, and questions to ask yourself to decide not only where you stand, but where each candidate running stands as well.

 

Health Care

  • What do you think of the Affordable Care Act?
  • Do you believe health care has to be affordable for the people that don’t have health insurance?
  • Is the Affordable Care Act even be enough? What more could be done?
  • Should states decide whether to expand Medicaid coverage or not?
  • Should there be work requirements in order to qualify for it?
  • What do you say? Which candidates do you think will promote the best outcome for you?

Climate Change

  • Is climate change real or is it a hoax?
  • Is climate change just nature running its course or are humans the cause?
  • Is climate change a major national threat?
  • What do you say? Can we turn things around in the next 12 years, to ensure we don’t see the severe impacts of climate change by 2040?
  • What steps towards bettering the environment do each of the candidates want to take?

#MeToo

  • Does the #MeToo movement make things harder for men or just the men that have sexually harassed or assaulted women?
  • Are the media coverage and allegations ‘unfair?’
  • Are men getting away with sexual harassment and assault because women get ignored or discredited when they come forward?
  • Why does society always jump toward blaming the victim?
  • Where do you stand?━ Where do each of the candidates stand?

Abortion

  • Do women have a right to a safe, legal abortion?
  • How far along into the pregnancy should be too far?
  • Should abortion be illegal in all cases, or just most cases?
  • Should the circumstances that lead to the initial pregnancy matter?
  • Should insurance companies be allowed to restrict coverage?
  • What do you say?━What do each of the candidates say?

Criminal Justice Reform

  • Is our criminal justice system too harsh?
  • Should we stop locking up nonviolent offenders?
  • Does it all depend on the crime?
  • How can we do a better to rehabilitate/resocialize former inmates into society?
  • What do you think?━Where do the candidates stand?

Economy/Jobs

  • How will the success of big companies encourage economic growth for everyone?
  • What is the new tax law all about?
  • Should we be paying more attention to programs like Social Security and Medicare?
  • What steps should we be taking to move toward closing the wage gap?
  • Should we be protecting low and middle-class families?
  • Should elected representatives introduce policies on paid parental leave for employees?

Education

  • Are teachers underpaid?
  • How much should teachers get paid?
  • Should teachers have to pay out of pocket for classroom supplies and essentials?
  • Should cuts be made in other social programs to give more funds to education?
  • What can be done about student loan debts?
  • What should be the qualifications for loan forgiveness?
  • Are the curriculum standards effective in public schools?
  • What do you say? Where do the candidates stand?

Gun Policy

  • Do you support the 2nd Amendment?
  • Should the 2nd Amendment be updated?
  • Do people kill people, or do guns kill people?
  • Or is it more of a ‘do people with guns kill people’ situation?
  • Should people be allowed access to get a machine gun?
  • Should elected representatives raise the minimum age requirement for gun purchasing?
  • Where do you stand? Where does each of the candidates stand?

Immigration

  • Should protecting our borders be the top priority in terms of national security?
  • What do you think about families being separated at the border?
  • Is it right to separate children from their parents just because they are immigrants?
  • Should those seeking asylums be turned away?
  • Should there be a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants?
  • How should elected representatives deal with undocumented immigrants?
  • What do you think? Where does each of the candidates stand?

LGBTQ+ Rights

  • Do you think that love is love?
  • What can elected representatives do to protect the LGBTQ+ community from discrimination?
  • What can they do to protect them from from services denials, based on religious grounds?
  • What do you say? What does each of the candidates have to say?

North Korea

  • Can North Korea’s claims to denuclearize be trusted?
  • Should we maintain good relations with them?
  • Do any other the candidates have anything to say about the situation?
  • Would they sign off on declaring war?

Opioid Crisis

  • Are pharmaceutical companies responsible for deceptive marketing, helping fuel the crisis?
  • Is Medicaid to blame, providing more individuals with the means to gain access to opioids and…sell them? Become addicted themselves?
  • What should be done to help addicts get treatment?
  • What does each of the candidates say?

Police Reform

  • Does our judicial system hold police accountable for what they do in the line of duty?
  • Does it hold them accountable when their off-duty?
  • Do Black Lives Matter?
  • Is the Black Lives Matter movement divisive? Or is it just trying to get blacks included?
  • What can be done to prevent further police brutality?
  • What can be done to prevent any more unnecessary deaths?
  • Where do you stand? Or do you kneel?
  • What do the candidates have to say about this touchy subject?

Russia Investigation

Tax Reform

  • Will the new tax law only hurt taxpayers in the long-run?
  • Should the new tax law be undone?
  • What could be done to make the the new tax law equal for both the individual and corporate?
  • What do you say? Do you like the temporary benefits of the new tax law?
  • Do the candidates?

Trade

  • Will ongoing steel and aluminum tariffs hurt US businesses that rely on them, like cars?
  • Will the steel and aluminum tariffs be worth the retaliatory tariffs from other countries that will hurt US consumers and businesses?
  • Are the steel and aluminum tariffs posing a national security risk?
  • What is each of the candidates saying about this?

Welfare Programs

  • Are welfare programs just taking money from hardworking people to give it to those that are lazy?
  • Do these programs encourage people to stay poor or unemployed?
  • How can the people that already have jobs but still need these programs get help to become independent of the government’s help?
  • How should welfare recipients be able to use their money?
  • Should there be any restrictions?
  • Should there be work requirements for people receiving certain benefits?
  • Where do the candidates stand on this issue?

Do your research before you vote! An informed decision is better than no decision at all.

Sydney is a senior majoring in Sociology with a minor in Psychology. She's an avid Youtube watcher and Netflix binger. Sydney's a lover of YA fiction, especially dystopian series, and she can often be found around campus, with earphones in, listening to an audiobook. As someone that is forever getting lost in books, she thought it was time to share her own stories and opinions.
Lauren is currently a senior at UTSA who is obsessed with anything involving music and pop culture. She is one of the Campus Correspondents for HC UTSA, and is in charge of social media and editing. You can catch her traveling across the country for concerts, eating Whataburger fries, or constantly scrolling through her social media feeds.