In the months leading up to the presidential election, groups nationwide are working to increase voter awareness and voter registration, especially in college communities.
UB Libraries joined these groups Thursday, setting up outside the Student Union to hand out voter registration forms and applications for absentee ballots. The main table was decorated in the group's "Book a Vote" theme and was organized by a committee of library staff that spent a month and a half planning for the drive.
"It's very important to get unregistered students registered for the upcoming election," said Nicole Stenhouse, a staff assistant in the University Libraries director's office. "Unregistered and first time voters will make or break this election."
Many students that stopped by the table carried similar sentiments.
"I'm only sixteen so I'm not old enough to vote," said Dima Maddah, a freshman mathematics major. "If I could, I definitely would. People should definitely get registered so they can vote in this election."
"I think it's important for the youth to get involved and vote," said Kareem Youngblood, a sophomore legal studies major. "It's confusing knowing to vote for, because we don't really know what Kerry stands for and most people just want to get rid of Bush. But we need to vote if we want to make a difference."
Shanise Rhiney, a senior anthropology and health and human services major, agreed, saying that voters, especially students, need to voice their opinion in the coming election.
"Nobody's voting for a candidate. You're either for Bush or against him. And if Kerry does get elected, he's going to have to acknowledge the reasons why people didn't vote for Bush," Rhiney said. "If you don't know the significance of voting, this is the perfect opportunity for you to find out."
Stenhouse said a large number of the students that stopped at the table were not registered to vote and many had questions about absentee ballots.
"We're out here providing forms and information. Our goal with this was to raise interest and get kids involved, and so far, we've had a great response from the kids. They've been extremely receptive."
"We also have had some students say they've registered but haven't received any information," said Amy Hothow, an administrative assistant in the law library. "I don't know why this would be happening, but students should call the Board of Elections in their county to see if they are registered and proceed from there."
As a part of their effort to increase voter registration and awareness, the University Libraries will be providing all necessary forms in the reference areas of the libraries on-campus.
The deadline to register to vote is October 8, and the deadline to request an absentee ballot is October 26.
