If you’ve paid any attention to the 2020 presidential election, you’re likely aware there are more than a handful of candidates running to secure their party’s primary nomination.

And with many candidates comes many differing positions on issues important to voters — including Penn State students, who may be voting for the first time in the 2020 election.

The Democrats

Hoping for a new president, Noah Seidenberg said nobody can choose just one issue to focus on.

“I don’t know if there’s a main issue, although immigration reform, gun safety reform and the economy are all big topics,” Seidenberg (sophomore-division of undergraduate studies) said. “They’re all so important, so I don’t know if I can pick just one.”

Here is a breakdown of the highest polling Democrats, and their stances on some issues.

Joe Biden

A lifelong democrat, Biden has been in the politics game since the early 1970s. Biden, 76, was one of the first politicians to call for publicly funded political campaigns. In the late 1980s, Biden also became one of the first politicians to introduce legislation addressing climate change with the Global Climate Protection Act, according to his campaign website .

The 47th vice president has focused his most recent campaign on restoring America’s position as a global leader, defending the Affordable Care Act, acting on climate change. Biden leads the polls by 11.8 points, according to RealClearPolitics .

Biden has run for president twice before, and said the 2020 race will be his last effort to win the position, according to the New York Times . He also supports raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, reforming the criminal justice system and “re-inventing” legal immigration, according to his campaign website.

Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Biden is a graduate of the University of Delaware, a father of four and was the longest serving senator of Delaware .

Bernie Sanders

Well-known for his democratic socialist views, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is again running for president after being the runner up to Hillary Clinton in 2016 .

Sanders, 77, is a big supporter of Medicare for All. He wants public colleges and universities to be tuition-free for all students, and also wants student debt to be forgiven. He claims he will fight against the “billionaire class” and “fight for working families,” according to his campaign website .

The second-highest polling democratic candidate also supports the Green New Deal, an in-depth proposal to combat climate change, according to RealClearPolitics.

Often recognized by his voice, Sanders was born in Brooklyn, New York, graduated from Brooklyn College, and is a published author of more than 10 books.

Elizabeth Warren

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has increasingly emphasized her efforts to eliminate corruption in Washington, D.C. throughout her candidacy, according to her campaign website . She also hopes to reform the process of lobbying to “close loopholes.”

Warren, 70, also supports a foreign policy plan that opposes President Donald Trump’s “NAFTA 2.0” plan, which Warren says “prioritizes corporate profits over American paychecks,” according to her campaign website.

Like other democratic candidates, Warren supports common sense gun safety reforms, an investment in rural America and a “fair and welcoming” immigration system.

A native of Oklahoma, Warren graduated from George Washington University and in 2012 became the first female senator from Massachusetts .

Kamala Harris

Hailing from Oakland, California, Senator Kamala Harris previously served as the California attorney general and a district attorney in San Francisco. One issue of utmost importance to Harris, 54, is criminal justice reform, according to her campaign website.

In 2017, Harris became the second African American woman elected to the U.S. Senate, and the first African American and first woman to serve as attorney general of California. She supports policies such as raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, making college and universities tuition-free for many students and Medicare for All.

While she trails the previously named candidates in polls, Harris received much praise after her performance in the second round of the democratic debates .

Harris graduated from Howard University. She is married with two stepchildren and is a published author.

Other candidates running for the Democratic Party’s nomination include Former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke, Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and businessman Andrew Yang.

Discussing climate change, Dayna Glassberg wishes more candidates would take the topic seriously.

“[I would say] definitely environmental issues are important,” Glassberg (sophomore-earth science and policy) said. “A lot of candidates say it’s in their platform and they’re going to do things about it but it’s not their most pressing issue, which is hard to do because there’s so many different aspects to it. Also gun reform is really important to me to.”

The Republicans

In line with other modern presidents, President Donald Trump will run again to stay in office for another four years. The Republican Party has two other candidates vying to take over Trump’s incumbent seat.

Unsure about her sentiments toward the current president, Noor Al Jashmi wants candidates to be open-minded.

“A holistic view [is important],” Al Jashmi (junior-mechanical engineering) said. “It cannot be just one view. The current president is against immigrants and a lot of people but he is good at developing the economy, so there have to be benefits to the country and to the economy.”

President Donald Trump

Attempting round two at his current position, President Donald Trump has shifted his campaign slogan from “Make America Great Again” to “Keep America Great,” according to his campaign website . He passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which provided $1.5 trillion in tax cuts to Americans, according to Trump’s website, “Promises Kept .”

Trump also wants to bring military members home from overseas locations and “rebuild” the military.

During his presidency, he has consistently donated his $400,000 presidential salary to organizations such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Small Business Administration, according to Politifact .

A graduate of the Wharton School of Finance, Trump was born in New York, New York and is the author of multiple books.

Joe Walsh

A vocal critic of Trump, Joe Walsh is running for president because he believes Trump is “unfit” for the position, according to the New York Times . The former Illinois congressman supports securing the nation’s border and reducing the number of regulations the government imposes.

Walsh, 57, tweeted his support for Trump in 2016 and has since tweeted more “controversial” posts including one in 2011 that claimed Barack Obama won the presidency because of his race, according to the Chicago Tribune .

Walsh also supports lowering the national debt and tightening restrictions on executive power.

A graduate of the University of Iowa, Walsh was born in North Barrington, Illinois and hosts a conservative radio show, “The Joe Walsh Show.”

William Weld

Former Governor of Massachusetts, William Weld is currently the other challenger to Trump’s presidency. Weld, 74, ran for vice president in 2016 on the Libertarian ticket. Now, his campaign is focused on allowing “mainstream conservatives” to have a voice, according to his campaign website . He supports free trade and few government regulations.

The Cato Institute and the Wall Street Journal ranked Weld as the most fiscally conservative governor in the country during his time serving as governor of Massachusetts. He worked for seven years in the Justice Department during former President Ronald Reagan’s presidency and had previously worked on the Watergate impeachment case, according to his campaign website.

Born in New York, New York, Weld is a graduate of Harvard University and an author of multiple books, according to Ballotpedia .