Watching an American Election You Can’t Vote In

by Eda Devletşah

Millions of Americans cast their ballots for the 2026 midterm elections on November 3. But at SIPA, many students found themselves watching from the sidelines.

In our classrooms and hallways, students rigorously debate U.S. foreign policy, dissect electoral strategies, and discuss the future of American democracy. Yet, the students participating in conversations who are not U.S. citizens get no say at the ballot box on November 3.

I am one of those students.

As an international student from Türkiye, I have spent many of my formative years in the United States. I follow this country’s elections, debate its policies, and experience the effects daily of political decisions made in Washington.

American politics shape the communities I belong to, the opportunities available to me, and the future I imagine for myself. Though this country has come to feel like home, I remain solely a spectator in its electoral processes.

For international students, the midterms raise a question that extends beyond election results: What does it mean to be politically invested in a country where one cannot vote?

For some of my international friends at SIPA, the inability to vote creates a sense of exclusion from a political system that forms their daily lives. To international students who have spent years in the U.S., American politics may feel increasingly personal. The country has become more than a destination for education. We build our friendships and professional networks here and contribute to the communities around us. Our relationship with the political process in the U.S. is further complicated by the fact that we rarely fit neatly into the categories of “insider” or “outsider.”

Being politically informed and politically engaged are also quite separate for international students. Following an election, understanding its stakes, and debating its effects are not necessarily the same as participating in the political process. Voting is certainly not the only form of civic engagement, though it remains one of the most direct ways citizens can influence the direction of their government. For those of us without that right, the question becomes how, and to what extent, we can participate in American political life.

The uncertainty that accompanies international student life can also complicate this question. It can be difficult to fully invest in the political future of a country when one does not know whether he or she will still be living there a year from now.

A few weeks ago, a close friend of mine who has lived here for 11 years shared a similar sentiment. Maybe, she said, she would feel more engaged in American politics if she knew with more certainty that she was going to stay in the United States.

At the same time, American elections can impact international students beyond their lives here. American politics influence diplomatic relationships, international trade, and security around the world. For policy students who may one day look to serve in their home countries, a particular attention to American politics is important: Decisions made in Washington can affect policies students face when back in their home countries. We may not be members of the American electorate, but we are hardly detached from its stakes.

And yet, not having this right is not necessarily a cause of frustration or exclusion. Some international students may see their time in the U.S. as temporary and feel a stronger sense of political responsibility toward their home countries. The absence of voting power, in other words, does not elicit a uniform response from those who travel across the world to study here. It raises different questions depending on how long one has lived here, where she imagines her future, and what she believes political belonging should entail.

After nearly a decade of living and studying in this country, I have come to realize that political belonging is not always as straightforward as the distinction between citizen and non-citizen might suggest. Citizenship establishes the formal boundaries of the American electorate, but it does not necessarily capture the full range of people who feel connected to, participate in, or are affected by American political life.

This election season, I followed the election results closely, as I have for nearly a decade. I had opinions about the candidates, the policies, and the direction of the country that I have come to call home. The only difference between me and my American classmates is that they will have had the opportunity to express those opinions at the ballot box.

International students are neither entirely outsiders nor fully insiders here. Perhaps that is what makes our experience of American elections so paradoxical. We occupy a space between observing democracy and living with its decisions.