All roommates argue.

Some clash over dirty dishes. Others refuse to take out the trash or turn down their music. But what if you were constantly debating your roommate over politics?

This may not sound like fun to most people, but it’s a daily reality for Reagan McCarthy and Katierose Epstein.

They’re not your run of the mill set of roommates – McCarthy is president of Penn State’s chapter of College Republicans, while Epstein is president of Penn State’s chapter of College Democrats.

The duo met during the spring of their freshman year, fittingly as they debated each other on the funding of Planned Parenthood.

They exchanged phone numbers afterward and, as they say, the rest is history. Though they lived in different places for their sophomore year, they became close, and decided to live together for their junior year, and eventually their senior year.

“We have a lot of discussions, and sometimes it does get heated,” McCarthy said.

Epstein added, “It’s just kind of like a conversation. We could talk about an issue for an hour.”

The organizations’ HUB offices are also adjacent, and even have a door connecting them directly. Sometimes the two walk to the HUB together, climb the stairs, and then swipe into their respective offices.

“We spend a lot of time together, but we don’t spend as much time together as would ruin our friendship,” McCarthy said.

The door between the offices is especially convenient when the organizations work together to coordinate programs like their annual Great Debate. Last year, the event featured Howard Dean and Sean Spicer. With an open-door policy, whoever needs something from next door just needs to knock.

“I don’t think we could actually share an office,” Epstein said. “We’re all friendly, but that would be a lot.”

Both have been involved in their respective organizations since their freshman year, and served in various leadership roles before their elections as presidents in the spring.

“College Republicans means more to me than anything,” McCarthy said, describing how she joined the THON and fundraising committees her freshman year and then became the THON chair and a dancer the following year. She served as vice president for the organization for the spring 2018 semester before being elected president. McCarthy also serves as the executive director of the Pennsylvania Federation of College Republicans.

Epstein became the treasurer of College Democrats her sophomore year and administrative vice president her junior year before she was elected president. She was invigorated by a large class of freshmen and sophomores who joined the organization last year.

“I never thought anyone would call me mom except for actual children down the road,” she said. “College Democrats has not only made me a better Democrat, but more importantly it’s made me a better person.”

So what’s next for their respective organizations?

McCarthy admits the College Republicans “see this ‘blue wave’ coming,” but the organization plans to double down and rally behind gubernatorial candidate Scott Wagner and senatorial candidate Lou Barletta, who are running against democratic incumbents Tom Wolf and Bob Casey, respectively.

The organization also plans to amp up their work promoting free speech, as McCarthy says many students don’t even realize there are free speech zones on campus.

“We’d love to see some change made and make students aware of the policies we disagree with,” she said.

As for College Democrats, the organization recognizes one big challenge is a lack of diversity in the party. They’re planning roundtables with Penn State’s various multicultural caucuses this fall to talk about the party.

Epstein said they’re happy to see a lot more rallies and protests going on at Penn State, as it spreads the word about issues some students might not be up to date on otherwise. College Democrats is also excited to continue building their relationship with the Young Democrats organization in State College.

Both Epstein and McCarthy will lead their organizations in a huge push to get students out to vote in midterm elections this fall; that might be the one elections goal the organizations have in common.

This year is the first time in recent history both groups have had a female president at the same time. And if you ever forget which roommate is in which organization, just look down at their laptop stickers for a reminder. Each has a case covered top to bottom, though the sticker collections themselves couldn’t be more different.