By Stephanie Woodward |Staff Writer|

I believe voting is important, but I don’t think students are educated or aware enough on what we are voting for. Many students are not voting due to their lack of interest and/or not being registered.

In 2010, over a quarter of college students did not vote because they didn’t know where/how to register or they missed the deadline, according to the Campus Vote Project.

“By the time of the last elections, I wanted to vote but I wasn’t registered because I didn’t know how to register,” said senior Courtney Jones.

“I am not registered to vote because I don’t think my one vote can really make a difference,” said sophomore Lauren Monell.

Voting is a right to everyone of age; the fifteenth amendment in the United States Constitution prohibits both federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on their race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

As young Americans, we have the opportunity to vote and let our voice be heard and we should take advantage of that.

In the region of Hong Kong, pro democracy activists are outraged because there voice is being shutout.
China originally promised Hong Kong citizens that in the 2017 election they could vote for their chief executive.

Later, it was proposed that, to appear on the ballot, candidates had to get more than half the votes of the nominating committee, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong are outraged because it guarantees that only candidates approved by Beijing would be nominated.

Student protesters in Hong Kong have said they are determined to maintain a campaign for a full democracy, according to Aljazeera America.

It’s unfortunate that students in Hong Kong are fighting for their right to have a voice, whereas some students in the U.S. are choosing to not have theirs heard.

Rock The Vote is a large non-partisan organization whose goal is to encourage youth to vote.
Since the ‘90s, this organization has utilized pop culture, music, and technology to inspire political activity in youth.

Millennials, ages 18-35 could potentially be the largest voting block in the country, but only a small fraction are voting.

An estimated 30 million young people did not vote in 2012, according to the Rock The Vote website.

With hectic schedules, students often have a hard time following current events and issues in politics.
It is important to be engaged, learn about the candidates and study the propositions before voting.

On Oct. 26, in the library room 4005 you can attend the Get The Facts Before You Vote lecture by Gloria Andersen.

Registering to vote is also much easier than you might think; you can simply go online to sites like rockthevote.com or the Information Center to register.

Busy college students can also request an absentee ballot; which allows you to vote via mail.

By becoming aware of social issues that affect us, we can voice our concerns to enact change.
Take advantage of having a voice in our democracy, register to vote in the next election.