University students, faculty, and varied organizations gathered at Uptown on on March 1 to watch the results of the Super Tuesday primaries roll in. The event was hosted by Bucknell Left, WVBU, Young Americans for Liberty at Bucknell (YAL), College Democrats, Conservatives Club, and College Republicans.

GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton were the winners of the night, each winning 7 of the 11 state primaries.

As results poured in, students engaged themselves in meaningful political discussions regarding the candidates. The importance of the upcoming election among the students and faculty was clear.

“As a non-American, I’m not as well-versed in the American political system as I should be,” Mohammed Elnaiem ’16 said. “But I can promise this; the whole world is watching. Not out of hobby, but out of necessity. What Americans decide in their election is binding on the whole world. So vote wisely.”

During the event, WVBU hosted a live remote session. Students were asked about their thoughts and ideas about the election season as well as assorted political topics and media perspectives.

“I think that it’s incredible scary that we might have Donald Trump as our next president, given how he’s doing in the polls. It’s also scary that a lot of people will refuse to vote for Hillary if she wins the nomination, which might end up happening, and will end up benefiting Trump,” Christine Cremonni ’16 said. “I think the Republican party will do much better if they worked harder to attract our demographic. The fact that Trump is winning is proving that.”

As the primary season comes into full swing, student participation both on and off campus continues to increase.

Emily Jager ’16, for example, is beginning a campaign to increase political awareness and involvement on campus. She hopes to spark political conversations and inspire activism among students.

“Super Tuesday is really important because depending on the outcome, the races could be narrowed to one candidate per party, and I think more candidates benefits campus discussions because the two parties are so polarized that it will be really easy for people to either choose one and move on and ignore the elections,” Jager said.