The Kansas caucuses for the 2016 presidential candidates are quickly approaching, and both parties are encouraging voting.

The Facebook page “2016 Kansas Democratic Caucus” encourages voters to participate, naming all possible candidates.

Kansas Democrats can find their caucus locations at kansasdems.org. The caucus will be held from 1–3 p.m. March 5. The Democratic caucus is counted by how many people represent each candidate and delegates are given depending on who has the most supporters counted and given proportional to their percentage of total supporters.

No information was available on the last Democratic primary because of the nature of the caucus.

Republicans on the other hand operate their caucuses differently than the Kansas Democrats, but they will meet as well on March 5.

Information on the Republican primary can be found on the Kansas GOP website ksgop.org.

For Republicans, votes are taken for each candidate and delegates for each candidate are distributed proportionally depending on the percentage of the votes they received.

In the 2012 caucus, roughly 30,000 voters participated in the primary for the Republicans. In the 2012 caucus, Rick Santorum won with just over 15,000 votes, roughly 51 percent.

Washburn students like Joseph Bryden, a freshman business major, are participating in the caucus to let their voices be heard.

“Every vote counts,” Bryden said. “I believe that John Kasich is the best candidate for the Republicans. He’s got 19 years of experience, and compared to Rubio, Cruz and Trump, I don’t see why people overlook him. I want to make sure people see him and show he has support in Kansas.”

Freshman Hiram Hendrich, who is also participating in the Republican caucus, is going because he feels only one or two candidates represent him and his beliefs.

“I think Marco Rubio represents me best,” Hendrich said. “Some Republican candidates are too conservative for me, others too liberal. I disagree with some of their ideas and policies, so I want to elect who I think best conveys my ideas and who I think will do a good job as president.”