This year, NC State students will no longer be able to walk to Talley between classes to vote.
Our campus had a polling place in 2012, but it will not for this election. The closest site is 3.6 miles away from campus at Chavis Community Center.
Appalachian State University will now have an on-campus voting site, even though the Watauga County Elections Board voted against it 4-1, according to the News & Observer.
The N&O reported a North Carolina trial court judge said the board’s plan must now include an on-campus voting site.
We at the Technician believe there should be a voting site at NC State for every future election.
If a site were at Talley, students would be much more likely to vote because of its accessibility.
The New York Times reported in the 2010 midterm election that 3.9 percent of voters were age 18-25, and in 2008, young voters accounted for 10.4 percent.
In the ASU ruling, NC Superior Court Judge Donald Stephens asked for a judicial review of the decision of the Watauga County Election Board, the N&O reported.
Voting should always be easily accessible to college students, according to Stephens, who said he could “conclude no other intent from that board’s decision other than to discourage student voting. A decision based on that intent is a significant infringement of students’ rights to vote and rises to the level of a constitutional violation of the right to vote.”
If students are informed and wish to exercise their Constitutional right, there should be no obstacles. If the voting site is hard to get to, students are apt to skip the ordeal in favor of studying for a class they’re paying thousands of dollars to attend.
Student Government should take a greater initiative to advocate for an on-campus polling site.
According to The New York Times, Hagan won for the first time in 2008 by only 8 percentage points. Young voters were a large factor in this, as they gave her 71 percent of their votes.
NC State has more than 35,000 adults with the right to vote. Regardless of whom you vote for, you can make an impact.
Our vote can have a huge impact in this election. Politico reported that Wake County is one of the counties that could tip the balance of power in the U.S. Senate.
For that reason, students now more than ever should be able to vote on campus.
Regardless of the party you associate yourself with, get to the polls and vote. Early voting begins Thursday, and Election Day is Nov. 4.
If we as students turn out in large numbers, it will show lawmakers that regardless of the obstacles some legislators attempt to put in our way, our voice and our vote will not be silenced.
