Students in Introduction to Comparative Politics held a public debate for a mock election campaign in the fictitious country of West Europa on April 12. The debate was the capstone of a semester-long project in the course taught by Assistant Professor of Government Sharon Werning Rivera.
The project involved students organizing political parties, drafting party platforms, devising campaign strategies, designing party logos, producing one-minute original campaign ads and preparing public statements. Parties ran the gamut of Western Europe's political spectrum — from neo-fascist to communist — and included such names as the Trinity Party, Cultural Preservation Party, Christian Republican Party, Democratic Labor Party, Free Libertarian Party of West Europa, Worker Party and the New Green Party.
At the public debate, 12 party leaders — in two groups of six each — debated issues of economic policy, social policy and foreign policy and competed for the audience's support. Student participants included Mariam Ballout, Zak Cohen, Kevin Coughlin, Tim Eismeier, Andrew Gumbiner, Josh Meah, Rob Neighbors, Andrew Neumann, Andy Steele, Chelsea Stone, Bessie Taliaferro and Eliza Timpson. At the conclusion of each debate, a panel of expert judges decided on a winner based on the content and delivery of the presentations. The winner of the first debate was Josh Meah, representing the United Worker Revolutionaries. The winner of the second debate was Andy Steele of the New Nationalists.
