Considering that politics is the reason for DC’s existence, and American is one of the universities in DC that students seek out to get a front row seat to politics and perceived accessibility of political activity, it should not be too surprising that there is a high level of political activity there, just the opposite of the OP’s preferences.
But note that Madison is the state capital of Wisconsin, so the proximity to state politics may have some effect on political activity on the University of Wisconsin campus.