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I Argued with My Grandfather About Politics Before I Even Knew What Politics Meant
I was in sixth grade during the 2016 election.
I didn’t know what Democratic or Republican policies stood for, but I knew my parents supported Hillary Clinton. So I did too.
It wasn’t because I understood her platform — it was because I wanted to see a woman win, and because I knew my family voted blue.
My grandfather didn’t see it that way. He was — and still is — a proud Republican. I remember trying to explain why I liked Clinton. He cut me off and shook his head. He didn’t want to talk about policy. He wanted to talk about how “we don’t need a woman in charge.” And it stung. Even when I didn’t have the vocabulary for feminism or patriarchy, I knew something was off.
Years later, not much has changed. Despite all the scandals, despite everything that’s been said and done, he still voted for Trump. And when I asked him why, his answer was simple. “He’s not a Democrat.”
It never mattered to him what the candidate did — it mattered what party they belonged to.
That conversation taught me that for some people, politics isn’t about ideas. It’s about identity. For my grandfather, being Republican is more than a preference. It’s a loyalty. It’s why he can’t bring himself to say…
