"We need to be patient," said Don Charnsupharindr '03 of Thailand.

International students also found interesting comparisons between politics in the United States and in their own countries.

The dominance of only two parties seems to offer "little freedom of choice and lack of flexibility," according to Marian H. Smith '04 from Denmark, Somalia, and Luxembourg.

German student Martin Kanz '04 said, "the third party issue is what I find strange."

"It's striking that people are voting for Nader even though there is no chance of their voice being heard," he said.

Kanz said in Germany people voted more along party lines and less for the personality of a candidate.

In contrast, "American campaigns focus on people rather than issues, and there is a lot of changing among parties," he said. "It doesn't happen to that extent in Germany because of strong loyalties to parties."

Many international students also found fault with the United States' unique Electoral College system, which in this election, could put George W. Bush in office despite a defeat by Al Gore '69 in the popular vote.