Michael Kelsch never thought he’d play a round of golf with Sen. John Hoeven, have the chance to meet Donald Trump Jr., or that so many people would care about what he and his friends think about a slew of different issues.

“I had no idea that so many different people would want to come to us and ask us (what we think about topics),” said Kelsch, a senior majoring in political science.

But that and more was possible through his involvement in UND College Republicans.

Organizations like College Republicans and College Democrats give students a voice in the political system and allow them the chance to become a future political leader.

The groups allow students to express what issues they care about and give them a platform to talk to lawmakers about those issues, organization leaders say.

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Each group has been preparing for the upcoming election this semester, whether it’s going door-to-door to campaign for candidates or helping people know where to vote. Leaders say it has been a very busy semester so far.

Each group has also had the chance to meet with members of Congress and those running for election this year. The UND College Democrats have had Sen. Heidi Heitkamp on campus, as well as Mac Schneider, the Democratic nominee for U.S. House.

College Republicans have had the chance to meet with Rep. Kevin Cramer, who is running for the Senate, as well as Kelly Armstrong who is running for Cramer’s House seat.

Students care deeply about politics and what goes on in their city, state and country, but finding avenues to express their thoughts can sometimes be difficult for students, College Democrats leader Riley Brainard said.

But living in North Dakota is unusual because of the access people have to their representatives and the influence they can have in politics, he said.

“One of the main goals of the club (College Democrats) is to show people how close you are to your representative and how much of a difference you can make just by A. talking to your representatives or B. getting involved and campaigning and C. voting,” said Brainard, who is originally from Albuquerque, N.M.

Kelsch, a Bismarck native, said it is important for students to be connected to their lawmakers because it’s important to let students know they have a seat at the table when it comes to discussions on a variety of topics.

“It’s not until students experience that that they finally realize they want to be a part of it more or maybe they realize ‘Oh, that’s not really for me,’ ” Kelsch said. “I always want to students to feel like they matter.”

Kelsch said students make up a lot of the “ground game” for the party through volunteering and talking with students and the community about different issues.

Brainard, a sophomore aviation major who has been involved with College Democrats since he was a freshman, became more involved with politics after the 2016 election.

“I was trying to find an avenue to express change and just getting involved and College Dems really helped me out with that,” he said. “I think we’ve seen a pretty massive spike in involvement, so it’s been pretty exciting from my end.”

Kelsch has been involved with the organization periodically throughout his time at UND, but took a more formal role with College Republicans this year after the group was looking for someone to take over a leadership role. Kelsch said he also started paying more attention to politics during the 2016. The College Republicans were in a bit of a “lull” after the 2016 election and are currently in a rebuilding phase, Kelsch said.

When it’s not election season, the groups help bring students to the Legislature as well as legislators to the students to help their voices be heard.

But Kelsch and Brainard noted there’s never really an off-season for their respective groups.

Kelsch said he wants to show students there’s more to politics than campaigning and elections. Brainard expressed a similar sentiment.

“(College Democrats) should always be there for the students and we’re always trying to help students and get them involved in the political process whether or not there’s an election,” Brainard said.

Rep. Corey Mock, D-Grand Forks, was never involved in College Democrats or UND student government, he was involved in Greek life and its governing body. Despite this, Mock said being involved in college politics allows students to learn more about the world and explore their interests in a low-risk, high-reward setting.

“It connects you with internship opportunities, you can hear from local political leaders and just kind of get exposure to what politics really is about,” he said. “(Politics) isn’t always what you think. It’s not all what you see on the evening news or what is pictured in dramas and TV shows.”

While being involved in things like College Democrats and College Republicans can lead to things like internships with congressional offices or other opportunities in Bismarck, it can also help launch the political careers of young lawmakers.

District 42 in particular, which includes UND, has been a launching point for many politicians in North Dakota.

Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem was first elected to the Legislature from District 42 in 1976, Nick Hacker, who currently serves as the vice chair of the State Board of Higher Education, was elected to the House when he was just 19 from the district, and former head of the state Democratic-NPL Party and current candidate for tax commissioner Kylie Oversen was also elected to the House while attending UND.

“It’s a great opportunity for young leaders to get experience and do some incredible work across the state,” Mock said.

Rep. Jake Blum, R-Grand Forks, was elected to the state Legislature from District 42 in 2016. Blum is also the deputy director of communications for Kevin Cramer.

While he was always a “politically inclined guy,” Blum said he never expected he would run for the Legislature as soon as he did, but having the experience of College Republicans helped him along the way.

“(College Republicans) led me to pretty meaningful connections in the community that also helped me make my decision to run,” he said.

Blum said he became active in College Republicans when he was a sophomore.

“It’s just such an easy way to get involved in local government,” Blum said. “I just think they both (College Republicans and Democrats) serve such an essential function to get folks involved in the process.”