With Election Day approaching fast, students were able to register to vote for the Nov. 6 general election through the Show You Care and Vote Bus Tour which came to campus from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 19 on the Mound Street Plaza. The tour is a WBNS-10TV initiative to generate interest among young voters and get them registered to vote.
Representatives from 10TV, Capital University staff members and members of Student Government stood outside Yochum Hall encouraging everyone walking by to register to vote or fill out an absentee ballot if they had not already done so. Overall, 25 people on campus filled out voter registration forms and 28 turned in absentee ballot applications.
In addition to visiting Capital, the 10TV tour will travel to a number of area college campuses where they will answer questions and hand out information while a representative from the Secretary of State will be there to make sure registration is done properly.
“This is the third year we’ve done this,” Nichole Johnson, director of media relations and communications, said. “The first year we had the most registrations of any college campus in the area. “
Johnson stated that the reason the numbers have been so high is the student government representatives who stand out there with them, getting their friends and classmates to sign up.
“I really enjoyed working the event and was very excited that Student Government was invited to participate,” Student Government vice-president Mitch Stith said.
“I really felt like it was a truly nonpartisan attempt to encourage more people in our generation to be active citizens of their community, their state, and their country and I hope that the event will return to Capital once again next year.”
Johnson and President Denvy Bowman agreed that the event Capital’s mission to prepare civically engaged and active citizens.
“With the recent visits of Governor Romney and President Obama, our students have had the opportunity to listen and discern for themselves which potential world leader’s views best reflects their own personal values so that, when they vote in November, they will act in an informed manner and with conviction,” Bowman said.
“Capital should be proud of our long-standing role in underscoring the value of seeking out diverse perspectives in pursuit of truth.”
All voters must be registered to vote by Tuesday, Oct. 9 to vote in the Nov. 6 general election.
“The best way to participate in our democracy and have your voice be heard is through voting,” Bowman said. “Ohio’s voter registration deadline of October 9 is quickly approaching, and so I encourage all our campus community members to register and to vote!”
sschilling@capital.edu
