When senior business and political science major Tanner Swanson began his freshman year at ASU, he saw a disjoint when he visited political groups on campus. In response, he helped found a national bipartisan student organization called Action for America.
"We want to create a space where we can bring together college republicans and college democrats, and we want to create a space where we can have an open discussion," Swanson said. "It's about putting country over party."
The organization hosts open forums and guest speakers, usually experts in the topic they are delegating, from political organizations every two to three weeks. All ASU students may attend.
Swanson said each meeting usually has a focus on a politically charged topic such as immigration, education or abortion.
He also said AFA has been operating nationally for a year and has more than 20 active chapters on college campuses throughout the country. The organization previously operated under the names, "Run for America" and "Common Sense Action," but in both cases had slightly different missions.
Eric Dunn, a junior business and data analysis major, was involved during both transitions. He currently serves on the board as co-director of policy.
"We focus on a really policy-oriented approach, rather than which side is winning or which side is right," Dunn said. "A focus on the eventual solution (instead of) this sort of partisan flavor that you find in a lot of different organizations."
This year, Swanson said each chapter aims to send one to two delegates to a designated location to cultivate a 10-year plan for the country. AFA officials predict a turnout of 435 delegates of all ages around the country.
Kelly Rice, a sophomore genetics and Arabic studies major is the southwest recruitment chair who served as an intern at the AFA national office in Washington DC this summer.
"The movement is not new, and the people around it are not new," Rice said. "My ultimate vision is that every college student by the time we are here knows our name. We want to have representation in the organization no matter what. I want us to be the crux of political discussion."
Reach the reporter at Garrison.Murphy@asu.edu or follow @Garrison_Murphy on Twitter.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
