In order to increase voter turnout in the November presidential election, the Graduate Business Student Association (GBSA) at NSU has partnered up with Rock the Vote, which is a nonprofit organization that is not affiliated with a political party.
The organization’s mission is to build the political power of young people in the United States. Rock the Vote was founded 21 years ago and has registered more than five million people. Using music, celebrity spokespeople, and new technology such as facebook and twitter, Rock the Vote seeks to motivate the young people in this country to participate in every election.
On Aug. 24 GBSA had a table at SEA Thursday, to inform students about Rock the Vote and why students should vote. Members of GBSA answered questions and with their laptops instructed students on how to register to vote on line.
Anthony Campenni, GBSA president, said that seeing so many students registering to vote was very rewarding.
He said, “We are not a political group but we wanted to bring this initiative at SEA Thursday to let students know that their voice counts all the time, in a presidential election or even at NSU in their organizations”.
Erica Griffin, the event director of GBSA and a graduate student in international business administration, said it is important for students to get involved with election.
Griffin said that Rock the Vote is a great way to build voting awareness amongst the student body, and also a way to educate students on not only presidential elections but local elections as well.
When it comes to voting there are some guidelines. Any person that wants to vote must be a U.S. citizen and at least 18 years of age. If a student wants to register to vote, the school address can be used. A person can check if they are registered to vote by calling their home state election officials or logging on to canivote.org.
For more information on the election process and how to register to vote log on to www.rockthevote.org.
