Every 4 years, a presidential election is held. US citizens who are eligible have the ability to use their voice by voting for the political candidate that they choose to support.

Current President Donald Trump, presidential nominee for the Republican Party, and Joe Biden, former Vice President and nominee for the Democratic Party, are running against each other in this year’s election.

Election Day is coming up on Nov. 3, with early voting already started in mid-October. People can vote in-person, submitting an absentee ballot, early voting, and voting by mail.

“I don’t feel comfortable doing mail-in ballot because it could maybe get lost or not counted,” senior Nolan Chandler, a registered voter, said. “I’m doing in person on Election Day.”

In Burke’s senior class, the total number of students is pushing 500. With this, there are a handful of students who have turned 18 and are eligible to vote.

“Now that I can vote, I feel like my voice is a little more heard,” Chandler said. “When you’re younger people look down on you and say ‘oh, you can’t vote yet so it shouldn’t matter to you.’ But, now since I can vote, I am able to have those conversations and back up why and who I’m voting for.”

The two candidates of the 2020 election have been mixed in with several controversies and accusations. These controversies have been heavily covered by the media. This has effected the way people see each candidate and the way they vote.

“Well, I was looking forward to voting when I was 16 and 17,” senior Paige Davison said. “I knew my birthday would fall before the election. But now, I am more worried than looking forward to it because I dislike both of our options.”

Because of the controversies of both presidents, several people are looking and voting for a certain candidate based on their policies versus their past faults, accusations and other negative factors.

“I believe in our constitutional rights and our human rights. So, someone who will fight to not let someone take out some of our constitutional rights,” said Chandler. “I want to vote for someone who puts America first.”

According to Michael McDonald, a professor at University of Florida, nearly 240 million US citizens are eligible to vote in this year’s election.

“The right to vote is important because it gives us all a voice,” Davison said. “That’s also why it’s so important to vote if you are eligible to do so. If you do not vote that’s one less voice being heard.”