Many college students take off for warmer climates or a ski vacation during their holiday break, but two Omaha natives are on a quest in Iowa on their winter break. Allison Seger of Omaha, who attends Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburg, was in Des Moines, Iowa, last Thursday morning to listen to Republican presidential candidate John McCain.

"I guess to learn more about options," she says. Seger and her friend Abbie Locke of Omaha, a Creighton University student, are trying to see as many of the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates as they can. "We just wanted to kind of get a little more knowledge about all of the presidential campaigns because we both think it’s very important…we figure someone we visit will be the president," Locke says.

Seger sums it up this way: "Sort of like a road trip around Iowa, just comparing and researching." Neither is studying political science in college. Locke is a biology major. Seger is an English major.