Students and faculty at Nicholls State University shared their opinions of Bobby Jindal and his run for presidency this past week.

Jindal, Louisiana’s governor, announced on June 24 that he would be running for president in 2016. The state of Louisiana has had its complaints with Jindal and his unpopularity did not go unnoticed on Nicholls campus.

There were many concerns with Jindal in regards to his shortfalls every year with the budget, specifically his cuts to education and healthcare. Many people have lost jobs and tuition has continued to go up directly affecting Nicholls students. Jindal inherited a $900 surplus when he became governor and now budget documents have shown deficits of more than $1 billion.

Rusty Thysell, young democrats’ adviser, said, “One can make the argument that you [Bobby Jindal] need to spend more time taking care of your affairs. There are a lot of problems in the state of Louisiana and you are spending so much time in Iowa trying to get votes.”

Thysell explained Jindal is in his second term as governor, which is winding down and that he really has nothing to lose by running. He will not have the numbers to make the ticket. However, if Jindal could prove himself to be a good man to his party, he may have a shot at a cabinet post.

David Whitney, advisor of the Republican Club, said, “He is highly unpopular in the state of Louisiana. His popularity rating earlier this year was just above 30 percent which is lower than president Obama’s.” He may have had a chance about 4 years ago when he was still seen as a rising star in the Republican Party.

Jindal ranked among the bottom of the list for the Republican candidates according Joseph Curl. He only had about 1 percent in polls when compared to the others. The unemployment rate in Louisiana has risen from 3.8 percent when Jindal took office, to 6.7 percent today.

The negative opinions of Jindal were not just reserved for Louisiana residents. “If I were able to vote, I would not vote for him. He’s an idiot,” Tim Cook, a music major from the United Kingdom, said.

“Jindal has spent much of Louisiana’s tax dollars traveling outside of the state, and has devoted a great deal of his time away from Louisiana. He’s a governor first and a presidential candidate second,” Lawrence Arceneaux, senior history major from Chauvin said.

Arceneaux explained how not only have there been harsh critiques from Democrats, but Republicans as well have felt that Jindal’s campaign has taken precedence over managing his home state’s economic affairs.