The chief strategist of President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign and the chairman of the Florida Democratic Party encouraged students to re-elect the president at a rally Wednesday night.
At the Greater Together Youth Summit, strategist David Axelrod, party Chairman Rod Smith and a panel of speakers rallied students to vote. UF College Democrats President Erin Murphy also sat on the panel.
The summit kicked off the Gators for Obama organization. Panelists, students and party supporters discussed Obama’s expansion of Federal Pell Grants for college students and his changes to health care coverage.
Gainesville resident Ian Blake, 28, is passionate about the party but disagrees with how its leaders come across.
“Axelrod is a policy wonk and has an issue articulating a message,” he said.
Civil engineering sophomore Andres Llano, 20, said he was not expecting much before he came.
“I didn’t really know what it was about,” he said. “But I like what the Democrats stand for, especially since I’m an immigrant.”
David Axelrod, former adviser to President Obama and the communications director for his 2012 re-election campaign, discusses past actions and future plans for the Obama administration Wednesday evening in the Rion Ballroom.
