A Look Back at Super Tuesday: Harvard Kennedy School Students Discuss the 2020 Primaries

Before all the changes regarding the coronavirus pandemic, Super Tuesday reset the Democratic Primary. Fifteen states hold their primaries on this date, and the results always set the tone of the race moving forward. Listening to this episode now will have a different flavor because of all the disruptions coronavirus has caused in our everyday lives. Nonetheless, these conversations among students tell a story about the primary that is still continuing in the background. Tune in to listen as Phoenix, Lucy and Nagela (all members of the podcast team) discuss with other Kennedy School students what Super Tuesday looked like in individual states, perspectives on the different candidates, what’s at stake in the 2020 elections, and ways to move forward from here.

Phoenix McLaughlin is a second-year Master in Public Policy student at the Harvard Kennedy School interested in the development of rural areas. He worked in civil society grantmaking at the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, D.C. before volunteering in India with the Central Tibetan Administration and Students for a Free Tibet for the year prior to joining HKS. He graduated from Colorado College and originally hails from Maine.

Nagela Nukuna is a Joint Degree MPP/MBA Student, in her first year of the MPP Program at HKS. During her time as Undergraduate Student Body President, she worked on a number of issues, ranging from sexual assault policies on college campuses to mental health services for students. Her current policy focus is on developing scalable solutions for social policies, and designing more equitable systems in our society.

Lucy O’Keeffe is a first-year Master in Public Policy student at HKS, concentrating in international and global affairs. Prior to HKS she worked in environmental and energy economics research at Resources for the Future in Washington, D.C.  She holds a BA in Economics and Environmental Policy from Colby College.