Taylor Robert
Contributing Writer
Midterm elections are approaching on Nov. 8 and Dominican University has been trying to get students motivated to participate, but many students are still unaware that the elections are occurring.
Issues like abortion or inflation have been motivating voters around the country, and Dominican has been working harder than ever to help students register and vote in line with their beliefs, according to Mark Carbonara, the executive director of Student Experience Student Life.
We have had a number of DU Votes events that have been really led by Paul Simpson’s (director of civic engagement) team but supported by the rest of us and SGA helped with Constitution Day, which also was a voting drive,” Carbonara said.
But those efforts haven’t reached some students. A sampling of 20 students around campus over several days showed that only two even knew that the midterms were happening. Students were frequently using phrases like “what is that?” and “who is running” that assumes that they were clueless of the election.
That low level of interest in a midterm election is typical, according to David Dolence, an assistant professor of political science. “There’s probably a lot of students on campus right now that have no idea that the midterms are coming but that’s normal for midterms… that’s the way it is,” Dolence said.
In order for a person to register to vote in Illinois they must…
· be 18 years old to vote in a General Election or 17 years old to vote in a primary election if you will be 18 by the time of the General Election.
· not claim the right to vote anywhere else.
· Be a citizen of the United States.
· Be a resident of Illinois and your election precinct at least 30 days before the next election.
Students in Illinois have multiple ways they can register to vote. People are offered to register to vote when they get their driver’s licenses, but you can also register to vote online, in person or by email. Dominican University has website links and other special days that the university offers that allows students to vote. Even though there are many ways to register to vote, there are some guidelines you need to follow.
The links below are websites where you can register to vote:
https://ova.elections.il.gov/RegistrationClosed.aspx
https://www.elections.il.gov/votingandregistrationsystems/register.aspx
https://www.dom.edu/academics/experiential-high-impact/civic-learning/du-votes
rtaylor@my.dom.edu
