President Barack Obama will appear at UW’s Library Mall to to garner support for the Democratic Party as the Nov. 2 election approaches, DNC spokesperson Derrick Plummer said.
This marks the president’s first trip to campus since Febraury 2008 when he packed the 17,000 person Kohl Center. Already nearly 2,000 people are registered to attend the event on Facebook, and many more than that can be expected.
Plummer said he did not know why Library Mall was chosen out of the many potential venues UW has to offer, from Camp Randall Stadium to the Kohl Center, but he did say the Secret Service needed to approve the location.
Musician Ben Harper will also perform at the rally, although Plummer said a program schedule is not yet finalized.
The event will not be ticketed, but the DNC is encouraging people to RSVP for the event at www.democrats.org.
More details regarding the logistics of the rally will be released in the next few days, Plummer said, including what buildings may be closed and where exactly stages and gates for the event will be located.
Chair of UW’s College Democrats Evan Giesemann said he is excited for Obama to speak in Library Mall.
Giesemann said he thinks Library Mall represents the center of UW’s campus, due to its proximity to State Street and Memorial Union, among other buildings.
“I think it’s going to be awesome to have President Obama at the heart of campus,” Giesemann said.
In addition, the impact of having Obama arrive on campus as the first sitting president to do so in 60 years makes the rally one of the most important events at UW in years.
The College Democrats plan to help the DNC by promoting the rally and getting as many students to attend as they can, Giesemann said. Whether or not the organization is co-hosting has yet to be determined, he said.
Stephen Duerst, chair of UW’s College Republicans said the group plans to hand out pamphlets and literature on Republican candidates, but will not do anything in outright protest of the event.
“We think real progress can be made when we’re actually putting forth solutions, not just protesting him for the sake of protesting,” Duerst said.
