The Expat Elector: An Introduction

“Every four years in the presidential election, some new precedent is broken.”

– Nate Silver

My name is Phoebe Warren and I am a U2 student in the McGill University Faculty of Arts double majoring in Political Science and History.  I have a soft spot for the American presidential election cycle. I moved to Montreal in Fall 2014 from Atlanta, Georgia with the intention of distancing myself from the confusing and often frustrating American political system – no more Obama for America fundraising emails, no more State of the Union addresses, and certainly no more Fox News. After growing up as a political active young Democrat in the ultra-conservative Deep South, moving to Canada felt like breath of fresh air. Soon, however, I found myself missing the American political system and the antics that inevitably occur as candidates like Hillary Clinton and Marco Rubio began announcing their intentions to run for President of the United States. My political interests were quickly turned back to home while I remain here in Canada.

The Expat Elector will be a year-long blog for the McGill International Review Online tracking the important headlines and hijinks of the United States presidential campaign leading up to the November 2016 election. I will write short, blog-format opinion pieces several times a week as well as a weekly roundup including the most vital developments and events of the past seven days. As students in Canada, it is crucial to stay up to date with the election of our southern neighbor’s elections as it will determine up to the next eight years of leadership in the Oval Office.

It is important to note that, as a young, expatriate Democrat, my views are entirely my own and do not represent the opinions of the McGill International Review Online, IRSAM, or McGill University as a whole.  At the present, I plan to vote for Hillary Clinton but this may evolve during the next year. Despite this, I hope to provide as balanced of a perspective as possible within this framework as I do recognize that Democrats, just like Republicans, are a faulted party with their own problems to work through during the duration of this campaign in order to secure a victory.

I hope that you keep up with The Expat Elector on this wild ride that is the US presidential campaign. Feel free to comment below on posts to debate on issues – I would welcome any and all discussion!

With 400 days until Election Day,

Phoebe Warren