Student vote not powerful

It has been said before. The young demographic — namely 18- to 24-year-olds — don’t… It has been said before. The young demographic — namely 18- to 24-year-olds — don’t exercise its right to vote nearly enough.

In the 2004 presidential election, 58 percent of this age group registered and only 47 percent actually voted, according to the U.S. Census.

“Students are busy with class and writing papers and maybe they’re just not interested in politics, but I think if you look at the last elections, especially the presidential election, the gap wasn’t that large,” county spokesman Kevin Evanto said. “So every vote does really matter.”

Although voting is a civil right, it isn’t as easy as showing up at a poll with an opinion.

First of all, the deadline for registration — Oct. 10 — has passed.

Late registration is a likely reason why a lot of students won’t end up voting, according to Pitt political science professor Susan Hansen.

“The biggest factor that keeps people from voting is education, followed closely by age,” she said. “But a big deterrent for any well-educated young person are the registration laws. Every time you move you have to re-register.”

And students move a lot — sometimes each school year.

If home is outside of Pittsburgh, an absentee ballot is still an option. In Pennsylvania, a ballot application must be submitted to county offices by Oct. 31 and must be filled out and returned by Nov. 3.

“You can only vote by absentee ballot in Pennsylvania if you aren’t going to be in your town on Election Day or if you have a physical disability,” Evanto said.

Out-of-state students should contact their individual counties to check the state’s laws and procedures regarding absentee ballots.

With registration out of the way, the weeks before the election are a good time to beef up on election information like the candidates and their issues.

This year’s senatorial race is between incumbent Republican Sen. Rick Santorum and Democratic challenger Bob Casey. The gubernatorial race is between incumbent Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell and Republican Lynn Swann.

Sara Fatell, coordinator of Pitt’s Student Vote Coalition, recommends the Web site www.votespa.com for students looking for more information. It, among other Web sites, has ballot and voting information, including complete lists of the races and candidates.

Student Vote Coalition — a group of student organizations — is non-partisan and has one goal in mind as the election approaches: Get students to vote. In less than three weeks before the Oct. 10 deadline, it registered 1,750 people.

“I don’t care who you vote for,” Fatell said. “I just want you to vote.”

The coalition is holding an event from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 30 in the William Pitt Union’s Kurtzman Room to provide answers to any last-minute voting questions. There will also be information on the candidates and the voting process itself, including an opportunity to try out one of the new electronic voting machines.

With the new machines, a voter simply touches the name of the candidate he chooses. After all of his selections have been made, a review screen will allow a chance to go back and change any mistakes.

“If you’ve ordered a sandwich at Sheetz or used the self-checkout line at Target, it’s the same idea,” Evanto said.

The county’s Web site — www.county.allegheny.pa.us — has a schedule of times and places where there will be other opportunities to be trained on the new voting machines. On the Web site, people can also check whether or not they are registered and find out where to vote by using the polling place locator.

Soldiers and Sailors and Posvar halls are the two polling places located on Pitt’s campus.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 7. It is only necessary to have a form of identification the first time you vote at a polling location, and a student ID counts.

Despite reforms and initiatives, voters still find problems on Election Day.

“If you show up and you want to vote and you think you’re at the right place but you’re not in the voter registration book, you can vote using a provisional ballot,” Evanto said.

This means that your vote — if it is valid — will be counted after the election is over if necessary.

Education is key to boosting student voter turnout, Fatell said.

“Students don’t vote because they don’t think their vote matters,” she said. “The one power we do have is electoral power.”

Candidates often focus on issues important to an older demographic because these are the people who vote, Hansen said, and this alienates young people.

“It has been the political agenda,” she said. “Older people vote so candidates respond to things that don’t necessarily engage young people, like welfare and social security.”

Fatell calls it the “disgusting cycle” that can be broken if students realize that they in fact do have something at stake.

“Students are very single-issue,” she said. “If you don’t agitate them, they don’t care.”

But tuition and financial aid policy directly impact college students, and state representatives make these policies, Evanto said.

“Voting is not only your right, but it also has an impact on your future,” he said. “It may not seem like it now, but every time there is an election, people make laws that really affect your life.”