The SGA Lobby Board is hosting “Voting Matters Week” to encourage students to register to vote.
Since Monday, student volunteers from the Lobby Board, a nonpartisan organization under the SGA executive branch that promotes voter education and registration, have been tabling from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Crimson Promenade. Volunteers inform students about different ways to vote and ask collegiate voters to ensure they cast their ballots.
“Voting Matters Week drives forth an initiative to encourage students to register to vote for the upcoming election through various events and programming,” Morgan Patrick, SGA press secretary, wrote in a press release.
In addition to tabling, the SGA is competing with the University of South Carolina, which Alabama plays in football on Saturday, in a “Battle of the Ballots” to see which school can register the most students to vote during the week.
Ryder Griggs, a sophomore advertising major and Lobby Board member, said it’s important for college students to exercise their right to vote.
“Being able to vote is probably the number one thing you can do to actually make an impact on policymaking and decision-making,” Griggs said.
Griggs said the Lobby Board held a town hall meeting to help educate students on when and where they can vote, adding that the board plans on holding more events to raise awareness leading up to Election Day.
“It’s important that everybody’s voices are heard, especially on college campuses,” said Ryan Guth, a senior majoring in history and political science who also tabled for the Lobby Board. “These are the people who are going to be the future leaders of America.”
Guth and Griggs both tried to appeal to college students who feel disillusioned with politics, urging them to cast their vote and make their voices heard.
“You don’t have to vote if you don’t want to,” Guth said. “But do realize that your vote could impact so many people’s lives.”
Elections are often won by thin margins, particularly at the state level. President Joe Biden won the key swing state of Georgia by just 12,000 votes in 2020, a margin of a little over two-tenths of a point. In 2017, Doug Jones defeated Roy Moore for Alabama’s Senate seat by 1.63%, just over 20,000 votes.
Guth said that in the two hours that he tabled, he helped around 70 people register to vote. Many of the students weren’t from Alabama, and the Lobby Board directed them to resources for applying for absentee ballots, early voting and online registration.
“I think a big problem is people don’t think they have time because they wait until it’s too late,” Griggs said. “But if you do it a few months before, that solves all those problems.”
The last day to register to vote in Alabama for the Nov. 5 general election is Oct. 21, and the last day to submit an in-person absentee ballot application is Oct. 31.
“You should do your research and look at multiple sources,” Guth said. “And I still think that even if you’re cynical about it, there’s candidates and parties out there that could support views that you stand behind.”
