lpezzini@mustangdaily.net
Young voters have shown a lack of participation in past elections, but the 2008 presidential election showed a drastic increase in the number of voters in the 18-24 age demographic, according to Rock the Vote, an organization dedicated to increasing voter turnout among young people. The question now, however, is whether those numbers will continue to rise.
Though concrete numbers of voters at Cal Poly are hard to determine, the nation’s youth as a whole shows a trend of disinterest. Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) is determined to increase the number of registered voters even without knowing specifics.
“We don’t have any campus numbers and the reason why is that so many students do absentee voting or vote back in their home county,” ASI President Katie Morrow said. “We’ve been trying to really focus on the on-campus population since this is probably their first time registering to vote.”
Political science department head Craig Arceneaux said the cause of voter apathy in young people is a combination of various issues, including the fact that many young people simply aren’t looking very far ahead.
“Younger individuals tend to have less of a stake,” Arceneaux said. “It seems like the risks of not voting aren’t that high.”
Cal Poly College Republicans President Elena Reynolds weighed in on the issue, and said that many college students let their knowledge of current events fall by the wayside while they are busy with academic and other obligations.
“That in turn leads to them not knowing how to vote, so they just don’t,” Reynolds said.
Even on the opposite end of the political spectrum, Cal Poly Democrats President Kayla Clark echoed that sentiment, and said college students are often so involved in their own lives that they forget to look at the larger picture. She also pointed out this generation’s tendency to avoid choosing one side or the other.
“It’s this popular, trendy thing to not be affiliated, but the consequences are very tangible,” Clark said.
Of course, there are numerous other reasons why young people would choose not to vote, even those who are informed. Recreation, parks and tourism administration junior Travis Geerts argued that it is better not to vote than to vote for either presidential candidate if a person supports neither.
“I am choosing not to vote because I’m not a fan of either candidate,” Geerts said.
Other potential voters may also doubt the importance of their single vote. Arceneaux chalked it up to human nature.
“We all tend to rely on others to do things in a group effort,” he said.
An additional issue Morrow brought up is the fact that this election serves not only to elect a president, but also contains other races and propositions that can directly affect students. She spoke in particular about Proposition 30, which would directly affect the amount of money that California State University students pay for school.
“We really hope that everyone understands what it means and then makes their decision from that,” Morrow said.
ASI launched a campaign to promote voter registration at Cal Poly. Its effort has taken tangible form at on-campus booths, where students can register to vote and also online, where the link to register is available via the ASI website.
“So far we’ve gotten well over 800 students to register to vote just through our booths,” Morrow said.
The College Republican and Cal Poly Democrat clubs have also endeavored to promote voter registration by making registration available through either club. As Clark put it, the need for voter turnout is one of the few things the two main political parties can agree on.
With the recent voter registration scam on campus, it wouldn’t be surprising to some if people were more skeptical about registering to vote. However, Morrow expressed a positive side to the issue.
“It might have even motivated more students to double-check their status and make sure that they were registered to vote,” Morrow said. “It was a huge motivation for us to make sure that we’re as visible as possible.”
Morrow said ASI is planning on potentially conducting a survey to gather more information about student voters at Cal Poly. That, however, will have to wait until after the Nov. 6 election.
“What we can do to get individuals to vote is really just voter education,” Arceneaux said.