Students were able to register to vote on campus at the Department of Civic and Voter Engagement and the Center of Student Involvement’s event on National Voter Registration day in September.
Luis Negron | The Montclarion
New Jersey’s gubernatorial election for governor and lieutenant governor is Tuesday, Nov. 7. With election day closely approaching, many students are wondering where to vote. To inform students about voting, the Department of Civic and Voter Engagement at Montclair State University has placed resources and uploaded voter locations on the university’s HawkSync website.
Director of the Center for Student Involvement (CSI) Mariel Pagan has encouraged many campus residents to vote using the three local polling places located by Montclair State.
Students who are registered to vote using their campus address may place their votes in the Heights, the Village, Hawk Crossing, Stone Hall, Sinatra Hall and Blanton Hall on campus, according to Pagan.
The New Jersey polling locations are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. in all state voting locations. This is just one of many efforts the Department of Civic and Voter Engagement and CSI have endorsed on campus to get students interested in voting.
In the past, the Department of Civic and Voter Engagement has hosted events to celebrate student voter registration on campus. The goal was to encourage students to become involved in voting and make political decisions. This year, the department is positive that there will be a higher voter turnout rate than there has been in the past.
“Unfortunately, there tends to be a lower voter turnout for more local elections, which is unfortunate because so often local governance has more impact on our day-to-day lives,” Pagan said.
Pagan said she is positive students will vote with the information her department has given in person and on their website.
”I honestly think voting makes us responsible and prepares us for real life, which is why I will vote on Nov. 7.” said nursing student Kimberly Williams.
Some students are able to vote for the first time during this election, like freshman Tanisha Young. She is registered and prepared to vote in this year’s governor elections.
“As college students, we need to vote because the governor’s elections affect our daily life,” Young said. “I think the university giving us information on where to vote on campus is so important because for students like me who commute or don’t have the time to travel, it’s really convenient to vote either on campus or by the school.”
With positive feedback from campus students and the Department of Civic and Voter Engagement, this year’s gubernatorial election seems promising. The department encourages students to be excited but, most importantly, be prepared.
