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UNCA campus gears up for 2012 presidential election
Emily Foley
efoley@unca.edu - Staff Wrifer
Many students prepare to
vote in their first election this
November with help from stu
dent political organizations and
enthusiasts, according to on-
campus organizations. These
enthusiasts guide students
through the process of regis
tration, polling and providing
knowledge on candidates and
issues to create well-informed
voters.
The 2012 election proves rel
evant for many students with
issues such as healthcare, sus
tainability and various social
issues on the forefront. For col
lege students, rising tuition and
unemployment directly affect
day-to-day life.
“Some of the big issues cer
tainly revolve around the fund
ing for our education. We talk
a lot nationally about election,
but many economic decisions
are done through the state and
should get more attention,” Ben
Judge, SGA president and
political science student, said.
“After college, everyone is ask
ing, ‘Am I going to be able to
get a job?’ If you have a degree,
you will likely be able to find
a Job, but then it’s a matter of
whether it’s a good paying job.
The big issue is making sure
whoever is leading the country
will consider recent graduates
when repairing the economy.”
In March 2012, 12.6 percent
of eligible voters age 18 to 29
found themselves unemployed,
compared to 6.7 percent of eli
gible voters age 30 and older,
according to the Center for
Information and Research on
Civic Learning and Engage
ment.
“For people our age, the main
issues will be about things such
as the loss of Pell Grants and
rising tuitions. There are can
didates on each side trying to
reserve that money or reduce
it. and the economy in general
will greatly affect the student
body voters. No one wants to
graduate college and then have
no job prospects after spending
several years worth of money
and time studying toward their
Student Government Association President Ben Judge said SGA
Photo by Emily Foley - Staff Photographer
hopes to get UNCA students to the polls this November.
"Gay marriage and
women's rights
are incredibly
lmportant...the
more fired up
people get during
election season,
the more
participation."
Ben Judge
SGA president
degree,” said Scott Mermel,
political science student and
sophomore SGA senator.
According to CIRCLE, young
people between the ages of 18
to 29 consist of 24 percent of
the eligible voting population.
Although college students
demonstrate lower voter turn
out, they typically head move
ments pertaining to major social
issues among their communi
ties according to the report.
During this particular election
season, many voters on college
campuses focus on matters in
volving contraceptives, abor
tion and LGBT rights.
“Gay marriage and women’s
rights are incredibly important
to Ashevillians. The more fired
up people get during election
season, the more participa
tion. As students, we are about
3,700 votes. That’s a significant
difference. If our campus gets
fired up, hopefully other cam
puses will as well,” 20-year-old
Judge said.
According to CIRCLE, there
are 17 million new eligible vot
ers since the last presidential
election. Currently, eligible
young voters ages 18 to 29 ac
count for 46 million voters.
“Voter mobilization is one of
the most effective ways to get
younger people to vote. Many
students do not have cars, or
feel left out of the electoral pro
cess for whatever reason. Any
last minute encouragement to
register people helps,” said
Dolly Mullen, an associate
professor of political science
at UNC Asheville. “During
the election season, students
should make sure to offer rides
to the polls or give your friends
registration forms, and chances
are, they will help others to do
the same.”
Studies conducted through
CIRCLE found 87 percent of
students ages 18 to 24 who reg
istered to vote actually voted.
We just had the event
Rock the Vote, Rock the Boat,
through campus rec., where
people got to participate in
kayak roll sessions and got stu
dents registered to vote. People
just need to know how to get
registered and where. Getting
them to the polls is the biggest
hurdle,” Judge, of Chapel Hill,
said.
In 2010, only 13 percent of
college students said the rea
son they did not vote was due
to a lack of interest, according
to CIRCLE. Other major prob
lems included transportation or
not registering in their area.
Juliana Grassia, a psychol
ogy student, holds the position
of secretary for the College
Democrats at UNCA.
College Democrats team
up with other student organi
zations throughout the year
and host events encouraging
students to register and vote.
Events include Get Out the
Vote and Rock the Vote.
“Rock the Vote is aimed to
ward getting people registered
to vote. It is important for out-
see VOTE on page 4