The bottom-line is few people in their 20s vote. Thus, they have no impact on political decisions, regardless how strongly they feel about issues.Those of us who are involved in grassroots campaigns know the drill. When you walk around neighborhoods to ask for votes, it is intuitive that you will do best by talking to people who actually vote.
Campaigns in which I work buy access to one or more services (such as Voter Vault, Voter Activation Network or the local Southwest Computer Bureau) that provide lists, by streets and addresses within precincts, that tell the volunteer the names of all registered voters in a household, as well as their sex, party registrations, ages, voting frequency (the campaign chooses five elections to evaluate, and a rating of 0-5 is assigned to each voter to show how many of the chosen elections they voted in) and the last election date on which they voted.
The lists do not indicate how the person voted, just if he voted.
Armed with this data, a campaigner may increase efficiency, for instance, by only knocking on doors that house “chronic” voters (rankings of 3-5 and voted in a recent election). Why knock on a door where the residents don’t, or rarely, vote?
The same lists are used in phone banking when calling potential voters to ask for support. There are three things that continually amaze me: the relatively large number of homes that are not on the list, meaning the residents are not registered to vote. The abundance of 0-2 voting rankings (many are two story homes with BMWs and Jaguars in the drive) and the absence of people in their 20s who are ranked as chronic voters.
Note that my observations are made on data, not on what people tell me about voting. Everyone has an opinion, and it is rare that one of those folks admits that he doesn’t vote. While working in campaigns, volunteers usually have lots of conversations with constituents about the candidates. I like to make notes on the discussions and try to track the person in case I need to contact him again. I always check to see the registration status. It is common that the person lives outside the district and not registered to vote, but is full of opinions.
The tragedy is that a person who is passionate about the issues, who has strong opinions, does not vote.
This must change.
As in a number of recent elections, the upcoming presidential election is very important. It is imperative that all citizens of voting age learn the issues and follow through by actually voting.I find that most Loyola students are dedicated to improving our society and understand the value of casting their vote. I also find that most are registered to vote.
But they are confused.
Q: If I’m registered at home, how do I vote? A: Contact your registrar (ask your parents) about procedures. It is easy, but you have to plan ahead to vote absentee.
Q: Can I register here? A: Yes, you may. The registration form is simple, and there is a registration table in the Danna Center. The School of Mass Communication is holding a voter registration drive, too. Come to the office on the third floor of the Communications/Music building 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Monday or Tuesday or 9 a.m.-noon Wednesday, and fill out a form.
Note: If you register here, you may not vote at home. Your registration there will be cancelled, even if there is a lag time.
Q: What do I lose if I change to vote locally? A: You may no longer vote in your home precinct.
Q: What are the deadlines? A: For registering to vote in Louisiana, the deadline is 4:30 pm, Oct. 6. Make this deadline, and you can vote Nov. 4. Call the Orleans registrar of voters at (504) 658-8300 for more information.
Exercise your right and responsibility – vote in every single election. Either contact your home to get absentee voting forms, or register to vote locally. There are voter registration forms in the Mass Communication office. Pick one up and get registered today.
Bob Thomas is the interim director of the School of Mass Communication. He can be reached at [email protected]
