College Republicans is hosting a meet and greet for 2010 Alabama gubernatorial candidate Dr. Robert Bentley. The event will be held tonight at 7 p.m. in the Heritage Ballroom of the Ferguson Center.
“It’s a good opportunity for the students to see what he’s all about and to get to know his platform a little better,” said Rachel Wilson, a senior majoring in management, secretary of College Republicans and an intern for the Bentley campaign. “It’s great to be an informed voter.”
Students at the University are invited to shake hands with and say hello to Dr. Bentley as well as ask any questions they may have about the election.
“The best way to learn about a candidate’s platform is to actually listen to that candidate,” Wilson said.
College Republicans stresses that the meet and greet is especially beneficial for first time voters.
“This is the first time for a lot of students to vote in a statewide election,” said Angi Smith, campaign manager for the Bentley gubernatorial campaign. “The meet and greet is a great opportunity to meet with him one on one and ask him specific questions.”
College Republicans has held meet and greets in the past but members say they are hoping that the Bentley meet and greet will be the biggest one yet.
Wilson said the local ABC and NBC news stations will provide media coverage for the event.
“It’s rare to get governor candidates to speak to college students, and any time we can involve media and show that students are civically engaged is critical,” said Seth Morrow, a senior majoring in political science and communications and communications director for College Republicans.
Morrow encourages students, regardless of political party, to “look past campaign communications, read editorials and pay attention to media coverage” in order to make an informed choice.
“Students who haven’t made up their mind in their political viewpoint get to look him in the eye and ask him questions,” Smith said. “They can decide for themselves rather than by what someone else tells them or by a sound bite they may have heard.”
Smith also encourages students to attend the meet and greet to learn more about Dr. Bentley as a notable UA alumnus. Dr. Bentley completed his undergraduate studies at the University and his graduate studies at the University’s School of Medicine. He currently resides in Tuscaloosa.
“This gives [the University] a unique opportunity to meet the candidate based in its hometown,” Smith said. “It gives them unprecedented access and no other college in the state of Alabama can say that.”
Smith said that because Dr. Bentley is a UA alumni, students at the University can easily connect to him on a personal level through the meet and greet.
College Republicans meets every Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Ferguson Center Room 360. Morrow says, however, that the meet and greet will be this week’s club meeting. Free pizza and drinks will be provided at the event.
