By Madison Hunt | Staff Writer
Student volunteers and faculty waved students over with pens and papers on Fountain Mall Tuesday afternoon, pointing to QR codes for quick online sign-ups and laying out paper forms for those who wanted to participate in National Voter Registration Day.
Student organizations like Baylor Ambassadors, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and Texas Rising took to the SUB and Fountain Mall Tuesday afternoon to encourage students to register to vote.
Vice President for Student Life Dr. Sharra Hynes said it’s imperative that students register to vote and exercise their voting rights. According to Hynes, students are creating habits that are formative and will stay with them after college.
“Last year’s student government and Baylor Ambassadors did a big push for voter registration located at the Hurd Welcome Center, which ended up being a polling location on Election Day,” Hynes said. “It was one of the most active here in McLennan County, and we want to continue that trend going forward.”
According to Nonprofit Vote, as many as one in four eligible Americans are not registered to vote. Each year, millions of Americans are excluded from the democratic process because of easily solvable issues. Students might miss the registration deadline or fail to update their address after moving.
It’s this reality that led to the creation of National Voter Registration Day in 2012 and has continued to thrive ever since.
Hershey, Pa., sophomore Anneli Hellgren, a Baylor Ambassador, said the drive serves as encouragement for students to be politically active.
“It’s important for students to register to vote so that they can contribute to our political systems and make sure that they can do their voice is heard and have adequate representation,” Hellgren said.
The deadline to register to vote is Oct. 6 for McLennan County. Students can either go to the Secretary of State’s website and download a form or come to the Office of Government Relations to fill out the registration form in person.
Baylor Ambassadors Adviser and Governmental Relations Director Rochonda Farmer-Neal said she wants students to understand that the upcoming McLennan County election is not for the primary presidential election.
“This upcoming election in November for the county includes the Texas Constitutional Amendment propositions for each local county and their respective school districts,” Farmer-Neal said.
Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and Black Law Student Association also held a voter registration event in the SUB lobby. The event was marketed with the slogan, “A Voteless People is a Hopeless People.”
“Our vote is our power. For generations, the Black community has turned struggle into strength and silence into a movement,” the organization’s event post reads. “Registering to vote isn’t just a piece of paperwork; It’s honoring those who come before us and protecting those who will come after us.”
Tomball junior Kevin Georgetown, an Alpha Phi Alpha member, shared why his organization is involved and why it’s important to incorporate the Baylor community.
“We encourage everybody in our community, especially the Baylor community, since it’s small, to register and to actually get students to register and take accountability,” Georgetown said. “My fraternity’s motto is ‘First of all, Servants of All, We Shall Transcend All.’ Our main goal is to advocate for our community and make sure everybody’s out there getting involved.”
