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Wednesday, October 9, 2024
Volume 163 No. 20 SERVING SAN JOSÉ STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1934
WWW.SJSUNEWS.COM/SPARTAN_DAILY
INFOGRAPHIC BY ALEJANDRA GALLO
Students struggle with voting By Alejandra Gallo STAFF WRITER
Historically, voter turnout among college students varies from election to election but there is an upward trend in recent years. Young adulthood is an important period for youth in terms of developing a desire for civic involvement, according to a 2020 Electoral Studies study. Diya Agrawal, a thirdyear political science student, said she plans on voting in the upcoming presidential election on Nov. 5. “I feel a sense of importance and responsibility because this is my first presidential election,” Agrawal said. “I know that my vote matters.” In previous election years, there were low “yield rates” on college campuses because students were registering in high numbers, but not voting according to an Oct. 28, 2021 Tufts Now article. “I see the urgency of getting college students to vote but I understand that voting can be very overwhelming for students,” Agrawal said. “Especially for first-time voters, students may feel that they don’t have enough resources and it may seem really complicated.” However, in 2020, the rate of students who voted increased by 17% from 2016, according to the same article. “There is an upward trend of students who are voting but there’s still a lot of work to be done,” Agrawal said. College students are now voting at higher rates than previous generations, according to a Sept. 30 Hechinger Report article. Melinda Jackson, dean of undergraduate education
and political science professor, believes that many factors contribute to a decrease in student voter turnout. “If students don’t feel excited about voting, they are less likely to vote,” Jackson said. “Building up excitement and creating a norm that it is important to vote is crucial in institutions like San José State.” Many things can prevent college students from voting, such as students’ enthusiasm, availability of resources about the election and more, according to a National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement study. “Intimidation is a big factor that prevents some college students from participating in elections,” Jackson said. Educational institutions and experience are associated with voter turnout among young people, according to a Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement web page. “A lot of new voters aren’t sure what to believe and how they can make sure they’re getting accurate information,” Jackson said. “This often prevents them from participating and showing up to the polls.” Misinformation can be very damaging because it often prevents voters from casting their ballot, according to this Brennan Center For Justice web page. Jackson said she believes that there is a lot of misinformation that is on the internet and because of all the information, students don’t know what to believe. Agrawal is an active member of SJSU Votes and helps host events to encourage students to vote. “Institutions like SJSU can play a big role in bringing college students to the polls,” Agrawal said.
“One way students can learn about the election is through SJSU Votes.” SJSU Votes is a nonpartisan campus student organization managed by SJSU students and faculty under the direction of the Institute for Public Affairs and Civic Engagement that hopes to educate, mobilize and make voting more accessible to students, according to the organization’s web page. “Many college students are discouraged from voting because they have a hard time finding resources on how to participate in the election and also who to elect,” Agrawal said. “It is
“People who vote get to make decisions concerning these voters and the policies that get passed.” Crane said she believes that if college students do not cast a ballot, the older generations will make decisions for them, resulting in college student voters being a minority. “There are many pertinent issues on the ballot that college students care about,” Agrawal said. Youth who voted in the 2022 midterm elections reported abortion being the top issue that influenced their vote, according to a Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning
Intimidation is a big factor that prevents some college students from participating in elections. Melinda Jackson Dean of undergraduate education and political science professor
also intimidating because it’s easy to feel like you don’t have the right information.” SJSU Votes does a variety of voter education and turnout events, such as tabling or information sessions about voting that inform students about elections and candidates, according to Jackson. “It’s important to show students in a nonpartisan way that it’s important to vote,” Agrawal said. Donna Crane, lecturer at the department of political science, believes that college student voting is crucial. “If young people don’t vote, then what that means is that you’re changing the denominator in the election,” Crane said.
and Engagement web page. “Something that is different nowadays is that young populations are way more diverse, racially, ethnically and in terms of their immigration status,” Crane said. Magnus Herrlin, a fourthyear business administration student, believes that apart from factors that lead to college students voting less, Gen Z is misunderstood. “It kind of feels like there’s this weird juxtaposition because a lot of people view Gen Z as a very politically active group but that doesn’t translate to the voting results,” Herrlin said. Gen Z is more motivated by issues and values, such as climate change, according
to a May 26. 2021 Pew Research Center study. “Gen Z feels very disgruntled with the political state of the country and feels that races don’t really represent their values,” Herrlin. “They (also) can’t find a politician who will align with themselves,” Herrlin said. About 47% of newly eligible Gen Z voters are youth of color, according to an Oct. 18, 2023 CIRCLE article. Though the American electorate has become younger and more diverse, African American college students experience racism when voting because they are more vulnerable to voter suppression laws which include inaccessible voting locations, harassment and restrictive voter identification laws, according to a March 31, 2022 BestColleges article. “If young people vote, then the country will look closer to what youth look like and what they want,” Crane said. In the upcoming presidential election, at least 14 states will have 17 restrictive voting laws, according to a Jan. 18, 2024 Brennan Center for Justice article. “People need to have trust in our institutions again because people feel that politics aren’t working and their vote doesn’t matter when really voting does matter,” Herrlin said. “It’s about changing the narrative.” Herrlin said students don’t vote because they feel that their vote won’t count. Students are motivated to vote but when it comes to casting their ballot, they are hesitant about the legitimacy in elections, according to an Aug. 24, 2020 Vox article. Political science professor Melinda Jackson believes that students think their
vote won’t matter because of how competitive the state they live in is. “In a state like California, it’s a Democratic state and won’t make a difference in the electoral college because the Democratic candidate will get the California vote,” Jackson said. The seven swing states that will decide the election are Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, according to a Sep. 30 BBC article. “The fact that we already know that California will vote for the Democratic candidate means that it can be less motivating for college students to vote,” Jackson said. One way that college students can participate more in national elections is by also participating in local elections, which tend to impact them more, according to Herrlin. “Local elections impact our lives more than what happens more in our dayto-day life,” Herrlin said. In San José, there are City Council Member and Mayoral elections set for Nov. 5, according to a City of San José web page. “It’s important to get students to vote in national elections, but one way to encourage these students to participate in these elections is getting them to participate in the local ones too,” Herrlin said. Young people have a very great potential to influence elections and push for issues that they are passionate about, according to a Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement web page. “Students need to feel a sense of urgency to vote,” Agrawal said. “Our vote Follow Alejandra on Instagram @ale.jandragallo