Nov. 14th, I was able to attend the second Democratic debate at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. While the debate itself was very eventful, the perspective from behind the scenes proved to be full of excitement and political intensity.

4:40 a.m.- Woke up

5:33 a.m.- Left Lemont

7:45 a.m.- Reached Iowa state border

7:54 a.m.- Stopped for breakfast in Davenport, Iowa

10:34 a.m.- Arrived at Drake University

11:08 a.m.- Retrieved tickets from CBS representative at Drake

12:15 p.m.- Drove to downtown Des Moines

1:06 p.m.- Ate lunch at local Mexican restaurant, Fernando’s

1:48 p.m.- Checked in to Holiday Inn Express

3:52 p.m.- Got ready

4:38 p.m.- Left hotel

4:43 p.m.- Watched Bernie Sanders rally

5:01 p.m.- Saw Martin O’Malley rally

5:10 p.m.- Got in line outside auditorium

5:42 p.m.- Checked by security and Secret Service

6:01 p.m.- Found seats

6:52- Announcement to take seats

7:00 p.m.- First speaker leads prayer and invites all audience members to hold hands

7:06 p.m.- Drake Acapella group sings “America, the Beautiful”

7:10-7:25 p.m.- President of CBS (David Rhodes), Democratic Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Democratic Chair of Iowa Dr. Andrea McGuire, President of Drake University Dr. Earl Martin, and Twitter representatives speak.

7:30 p.m.- Moderator John Dickerson enters the auditorium

7:37 p.m.- Photographers rush to Dickerson to take headshots before candidates enter

7:49 p.m.- Candidates enter and take photos

7:56 p.m.- Candidates leave and floor director gives instructions on applause points

8:00 p.m.- Debate begins

*Breaks every fifteen-twenty minutes- candidates meet audience members and go backstage to get water*

9:50 p.m.- Closing statements

9:54 p.m.- Twitter review of the most trending topics- laughs from all candidates

10:00 p.m.- Dickerson signs off, candidates stay on stage for photos

10:15 p.m.- My photo with Hillary Clinton

Overall, going to the debate was a once in a lifetime experience. Drake University set the tone for a warm and open environment to ensure every audience member would enjoy the debate and have opportunities to meet the candidates. I will never forget this experience, and I’m so grateful to have this experience as a future voter.