TKC Republicans Hosts Voter Registration Drive
In an effort to improve voter turnout among King's students, the King's College Republicans hosted a voter registration drive this week from Monday until Thursday. After publishing the results of a survey which found that 27.5 percent of King’s students voted in the 2012 presidential election (the national average among college students is 47 percent), Dean of Students David Leedy reached out to TKCR (The King's College Republicans) Chair Serenity Richardson and asked the club to host a registration drive.
Richardson organized the drive with the hope of compelling students to register and visit the polls on election days.
“Our main goal was to change the 27 percent voting percentage, and you only do that by registering more people to vote and getting them information about absentee voting,” says Richardson, appealing to the civic-mindedness of many students and adding, “If students at King’s want to impact culture, one easy way to do that is to participate in our republican democracy.”
The drive is offering universal (excepting Wyoming and North Dakota) and New York state registration forms, allowing students to vote in their home states or in New York’s April 19 primary. On-campus students who wish to vote in the New York elections may use their apartment address on their registration forms, while TKCR is encouraging students who register in their home states to use TurboVote to find instructions for voting absentee.
TKCR hopes to improve turnout across party lines as well as state lines. New York law prohibits groups from supporting specific political parties during drives (although, Richardson noted, partisan groups often find loopholes), and, despite their name, TKCR is offering registration for members of all parties. Richardson encourages Democrats and Republicans alike to register
“I just want people to vote. Period. I want to see you participate, no matter what political party you are," said Richardson.
She estimates that 50 students have registered over the first two days of the drive.
TKCR will continue registering voters tomorrow and Thursday between 10:20am-4:30pm in the lobby.