By: Victor Lopez
With the 2024 United States presidential election approaching, many students are becoming concerned about the spread of misinformation.
Dominican students and undergraduates across the country rely heavily on social media for political news, specifically to gather information about candidates, the presidential process, and voting.
If students trust different social media platforms, then it becomes a huge mistake, according to David Dolence, an assistant professor of political science.
Students will then receive fake news about the campaign the candidate is representing.
“Do not use social media at all,” said Dolence.
Some good sources to learn more about the 2024 election include Vote Smart and Vote411.
Paul Simpson, the director for Civic Learning, said student activists and organizations have not brought any voter awareness or campaigns to campus yet.
In 2022, Chloe Young, a now social work graduate student, worked alongside Civic Learning to organize DU Votes, which helped register about 100 students.
Simpson said the registration was a combination of social media campaign and face to face encounters.
For students hoping to educate themselves about politics, Dolence recommends approaching candidates with an open mind.
“Whatever you think you are, force yourself to examine the other candidate, and ask yourself, why are you not voting for that candidate,” Dolence said.
Dolence also stated that people need to remember that voting is fundamental to freedom, and not just a game of winning and losing.
“The reason crazy people win is not because they are more popular,” said Dolence. “It is because the rational people don’t participate.”
Jakhan Dixon, a political science major, said he thinks if students do not vote, then they lose an opportunity to tell the government what is important to the country.
“Voting is the way to tell the government what we want,” Dixon said.
Simpson believes that it is important for all students to get involved in all elections. He is currently looking for students willing to collaborate with Civic Learning to help bring voting awareness to Dominican.
“During the fall semester, I want us to try to have a voting registration campaign that was as strong as the one that Chloe and DU Votes put together,” Simpson said.
Even if students cannot vote due to citizenship status, they still have a voice.
Some ways they can help include working for campaigns and talking to friends, relatives, and roommates who are eligible to vote.
Campus experts believe if more young people vote in the election, then there will be better chances of making changes for the country.
In the 2020 presidential election, there was an 11-point increase in youth voter turnout from the 2016 election.
