Campus groups seek young voters

When incoming freshman pull into their dorm parking lots for the first time at the University of California in Berkeley, they will be greeted by a swarm of loud, clipboard-wielding upperclassmen with one thing in mind: registering as many students as possible to vote in the November election.\nKalin McKenna, who will be a senior at UC-B in the fall, has been active in registering both students and citizens since her sophomore year. This year, she said there is an added energy toward mobilizing the younger population -- people aged 18-24 -- because in an election promising to be close, new voters could make all the difference.\n"We're such an untapped resource with so much power behind us," she said. "We could be the deciding factor in the election, and that's exciting."\nMcKenna is not alone in her efforts. In addition to similar community-based programs at college campuses across the country, this election is witness to the largest national youth voting campaign ever. Nonpartisan groups like Rock the Vote, Smackdown the Vote, the New Voters Project and others will spend an estimated $40 million to publicize their messages. Like-minded groups are blanketing television, radio stations and billboards with advertisements and Cingular Wireless customers can even begin the registration process through their cell phones.\nRock the Vote, one of the largest organizations, works to register new voters through an alliance of hundreds of entertainment icons preaching the same message, running the gamut from popular bands (Aerosmith, Dave Matthews Band) to actors and comedians (Ben Stiller, David Spade) to sports stars (Drew Bledsoe). Through partnerships with MTV, BET and Time Warner, Rock the Vote has registered 400,000 voters so far and will register 600,000 more before the election. \nThe IU Hillel Center will hold a series of voter education programs sponsored by Rock the Vote this fall starting Sept. 13. More information on the series can be found at the Hillel Web site at www.indiana.edu/~hillel.\nWashington, D.C., Rock the Vote Director Hans Riemer said the group's efforts are empowering young people to choose the president.\n"The elections are so tight and the public is so split and people know that a few hundred votes can swing state," he said. "And then you have a population that can shake up the whole electoral calculus. Seventy percent of young people who are registered to vote do actually vote in the election."\nJohn Tedesco, an associate professor in political communication and the director of graduate studies at Virginia Tech, said the movement to register new voters is coinciding with an increased interest among young people in the election. He said young people are naturally taking an interest in the process in response to events like 9/11, the 2000 election fiasco, and the war in Iraq.\n"In general, college students reflect what we see around the country -- we see the country more involved politically," he said. "It's a close race and there's a lot of drama. And the campaigns are mobilizing on campuses in the fall, but I anticipate it's because many of these issues have become salient with the young voter."\nTedesco, though, isn't content to rely on voter interest to generate record numbers at the polls. He is also a regional coordinator with Uvote2004, an association of 28 colleges and universities that registers voters and engages students in politics.\nTedesco said there has been no great surge in youth voting since the age limit was lowered to 18 in 1971. But, he thinks that could change with this election.\n"I think this election is going to be the turning point," he said. "Part of it is 9/11, part of it is the candidate's appealing to the issues. But I think the efforts by groups like the one I'm a part of are going to be productive."\nThe New Voters Project takes a somewhat different approach to the youth voting campaign. Rather than directing its efforts nationally, the non-partisan group focuses on six states with a population of more than 2 million potential young voters combined. There, the group developed grassroots campaigns with college campuses, high schools, Internet sites and community groups, as well as door-to-door and public event drives to target non-students.\nThe group will register at least 260,000 voters in those states, but the campaign doesn't end there. Communications coordinator Adam Alexander said the group will follow up with each person they register and make sure they plan on actually going to the polls on Nov. 2. For Alexander, who at 24 is a member of the age bracket he works to recruit, the decision to vote should be an easy one.\n"I say 'Hey, look, it's ironic we vote in the lowest numbers, because we're affected for the longest time by politicians and their decisions,'" he said. "You have an arcane tax decision or a foreign policy decision and we are the demographic that deals with the ramifications of it."\nMcKenna, meanwhile, is counting the days until the election. During welcome week, she expects to register a couple thousand new voters. Then, in the weeks leading up to the election, student volunteers will work each day at voting registration booths at locations around campus. She said all of her efforts are worth it if she helps young people find their voice.\n"This country was founded on the idea that everyone has a voice and unfortunately, that hasn't always been the case. But it is now and your vote is your voice," she said. "It's a way for you to effect change in the community. And if you want to lobby or advocate, they won't listen unless you and your demographic are voting. We need to say 'Look at me, I'm a voting citizen and it's a way to make change. It's a way to find a voice."