For National Voter Registration Day on Tuesday, Sept. 17, Vote100, the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students (ODUS), and the American Whig-Cliosophic Society held a one-stop voter registration drive at Frist Campus Center.
From 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., Vote100 student fellows and ODUS staff helped over 100 students register through TurboVote and assisted those who needed to mail paper registrations. Students were also able to check their registration status and request an absentee ballot for Election Day.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5, when students are on campus. Most eligible students are far from their home state or designated N.J. polling place. Classes are held as normally scheduled on Election Day.
“A lot of people seem to really care about voting, but they just don’t know how to do it logistically,” Vote100 Head Fellow Anjali Brunnermeier ’25 told The Daily Princetonian. “They might not know whether they should register in Princeton, or in their home state, or if they can do it online or what the timeline is — those are all concerns that we hoped to help address today.”
One of Vote100’s main objectives was to ensure the registration process was simple and efficient. “[The process] was very smooth; they were all very helpful,” Olufemi Obielodan ’27 told the ‘Prince.’ “It took me like five minutes.”
With November’s election being the first presidential contest most undergraduate students are eligible to vote in, many expressed a sense of excitement.
“This is my first time being old enough to vote in a presidential election,” Brunnermeier said. “I feel quite a bit of excitement, and a lot of people seem interested.”
“I do think that people are just more interested than [in] previous years,” Sol Choi ’26 noted to the ‘Prince.’ Choi attended a presidential debate watch party at Murray-Dodge last week and observed a large turnout of energized students at the event. “I do have faith [in Generation Z] — I’m excited to see what our generation will do,” he added.
To engage students, the event also included a photo-op for Vote100’s social media, along with giveaways like pins, hats, boba tea, stickers, and cookies for those who registered to vote.
“There were a ton of people at once all excited to ask questions and have their questions answered in highly informative ways,” Tori Repp, a photographer at the event, said.
Others commented on the historic nature of the election.
“This is history; we get to be a part of history,” D’Schon Simmons ’27 said to the ‘Prince.’ “If you’re not excited, you should be excited.” Simmons added that even for those who may not feel optimistic, events like the registration drive help to lift spirits and “bring up the morale.”
Brunnermeier also noted that the 2024 election is the “first presidential election after being back on campus” following the pandemic. “In 2020, all students were at home during COVID, so there was probably a different feeling,” she said.
Despite the unprecedented nature of the 2020 election, ODUS reported a record campus turnout of over 75 percent of eligible students that year, with Vote100 leading the effort to civically engage students.
Students at Tuesday’s event noted foreign policy, healthcare, student loans, and gun control as issues of significant interest compelling them to vote in November.
“Internationally, I’m very interested in the conflicts in the Middle East,” Simmons said. From a domestic perspective, Simmons is focused on how funding for the Department of Education is allocated.
Choi also views U.S. foreign policy as a key issue in the 2024 election.
“U.S. capacities abroad in terms of critical minerals, sustainability issues abroad, the Israel-Hamas conflict, and what’s happening in Gaza right now are just very important to me,” he said. “Domestic issues like education, access to housing, and reproductive rights … all of this is on the ballot.”
While some students have not been closely following the election, they remain focused on key issues that matter to them. “I think that both of the candidates are not doing a good job [on] what I care about, like what’s happening in Gaza,” Eric Tang ’28 said.
“I’d still rather vote for Kamala,” Tang added.
In the lead-up to the 2024 election, Vote100 is set to continue engaging students with events such as the New Jersey Collegiate Voting Summit, a vice presidential debate watch party, and Tiger Ballot Day.
“Like Vote100 says, to be a Princetonian is to vote,” Simmons said. “With our generation, there’s definitely a big push to vote, so I’m hopeful that we’ll show up to the ballot.”
Sena Chang is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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