In two days, ASPSU registers 985 students to vote.
On Jan. 9, ASPSU, with support from the Oregon Students Association, The Bus Project and Basic Rights Oregon, coordinated a two-day voter-registration drive with a goal of registering 700 students at Portland State University. By their deadline, Jan. 10, ASPSU had registered 985 students.
ASPSU and their supporters wanted to ensure a student voice in the special election taking place for Congressional District 1. District 1’s voter registration deadline was Jan. 10.
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In two days, ASPSU registers 985 students to vote.
On Jan. 9, ASPSU, with support from the Oregon Students Association, The Bus Project and Basic Rights Oregon, coordinated a two-day voter-registration drive with a goal of registering 700 students at Portland State University. By their deadline, Jan. 10, ASPSU had registered 985 students.
ASPSU and their supporters wanted to ensure a student voice in the special election taking place for Congressional District 1. District 1’s voter registration deadline was Jan. 10.
Drew Martig / Vanguard StaffTiffany Dollar ASPSU legisiative affiars director, encourages students to register to vote.
District 1, the congressional district that encompasses Washington County, Clatsop County, Yamhill County and a section of Multnomah County, is currently lacking a representative due to former Representative David Wu’s resignation on Aug. 3, 2011. The special elections day for the congressional district’s seat is on Jan. 31.
“We think it’s really important that students register and that they do vote. We’re totally non-partisan, so we don’t care how they vote,” said history junior Tiffany Dollar, the legislative affairs director of ASPSU. “But the way that we can build legislative power for students is by making sure that they’re registered to vote and that they do vote.”
“Often politicians respond to either campaign dollars or to votes, and traditionally students don’t have a lot of money to donate to campaigns,” said Dollar. “We find it really effective for students to register and vote, and then when we go to lobby our legislator we can bring those registration numbers as evidence as to why we should be taking into consideration.”
“It’s part of our mission, student engagement and civic leadership,” said Kate Helligso, communications director of ASPSU.
ASPSU registered more students during their voter-registration drive then they have ever before, according to ASPSU President Adam Rahmlow
“We’ve never registered more voters in two days,” said Rahmlow. “For a two-day record, that smashed any record we’ve previously had.”
ASPSU and their supporters used several different techniques to register as many students as possible. Aside from reaching out to students through clipboard canvassing, volunteers went to classrooms just before classes began, passing out registration cards while giving brief presentations on the importance of registering to vote. If a student has changed addresses or political parties they needed to fill out a registration card.
“We definitely had the captive audience thing going for us when we’re in the classroom,” said Dollar. “But we find that students also respond really well to people who aren’t looking for money and aren’t pushing for certain candidates to register them to vote anywhere on campus.”
ASPSU plans to conduct another registration drive in the spring to guarantee as many students as possible are voting in the mayoral elections this year.
“I see it as an opportunity to get young people involved and engaged in politics and the legislative process,” said Dollar. “We’re definitely going to up the goal; we’ll have more than two days this time.”
