Kristen Donat grew up in a Chicago suburb and followed the news and political discussion, but never had much interest in throwing herself in the middle of it.
Then this summer, something changed.
Donat, 20, is a junior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is facing the reality of finally having a vote in the election and began more closely following the news.
She soaked in the politically charged campus around here. She watched the tightening election polls. She began intense women's studies classes.
And she applied for a job with Advancing Wisconsin, an advocacy group of grassroots lobbyists, and just won an internship with NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin.
"I hadn't really done anything like that before," she said. "I just realized everything would be very different depending on who is the president."
She latched onto the debate over abortion rights because she has always been passionate about gender-based discussions.
She now works 30 hours a week knocking on the doors of undecided voters and handing them pamphlets about abortion rights. Sometimes, she will stay and talk with the people.
"When you find people who agree with you and are very supportive of you, it makes you feel so much better … to have that connection and that common goal of change," Donat said.
She also looks to Gov. Sarah Palin as inspiration — but her motivation is to keep Palin out of office, not elect her. Palin is a strong opponent of abortion rights.
"Her addition to the ballot definitely has made me want to get someone else in there even more. … The fact that it's possible that she might actually be able to do what she wants scares me. It scares me a lot," Donat said.
When the voting booths close in November, Donat says she will stay involved. She wants to continue her grassroots efforts in women's rights — and perhaps in economics and healthcare, topics she also began reading up on this summer.
"I want to feel like I'm making difference," she said. "I would like to say that I am."
