Students Pursue Political Internships
Due in part to the recent presidential election, an increasing number of students are becoming more involved in politics. As students begin to discover their interests in high school, they look for opportunities to further explore them. Seniors Samal Senaratna and Anna Ashai intern for Democratic Assemblyman Albert Muratsuchi, and senior Emily Schluper interns for Republican Assemblyman David Hadley.
Schluper received the internship in March 2016 at a Teen Court ribbon-cutting ceremony that introduced the new courtroom. There, she spoke with a representative of Hadley’s office, who offered her an internship.
“Even though I am a Democrat, I have learned so much by working in the office of a Republican,” Schluper said. “I have developed relationships with the office staff, constituents and even Hadley himself.”
Senaratna found out about the internship position through Robert Magee, the president and founder of Strategoi, which is a nonprofit organization dedicated to involving the younger generation involved in the political sphere.
Most interns at both offices start off with phone banking, which is the act of calling registered voters and asking if they will be supporting the Assemblyman under which they intern and informing them about the Assemblyman’s position on different topics. Interns are also tasked with canvassing in which they go door to door around the district and ask if residents will be voting for their respective Assemblyman and whether the voters would like lawn signs.
Although all three started off phone banking and canvassing, Schluper, Senaratna and Ashai are now all assigned to very different jobs.
Schluper researches bills, writes letters, makes certificates, files unclaimed property, updates mailing lists and participates in political community events. Senaratna has also gained new responsibilities, including leading correspondence in the Torrance area and being one of the two interns on the candidate’s cabinet, where he plans campaign strategies with officials. Ashai is involved with tasks that involve recruitment. She makes graphics and recruitment flyers, and visits public places to try to recruit high school students and encourage them to become more involved in politics.
These internship opportunities have given these ambitious students the chance to gain experience for what they intend to do in the future. Along with discovering their passions for politics, Schluper, Senaratna and Ashai were also able to learn many other important lessons that will help them in the future.
“Working for Muratsuchi’s campaign showed me that each person’s voice has the power to make a difference and that I should stand up for what I believe in because I have the ability to make a change, just like everyone else does,” Ashai said.
