Today is the last day for Oregonians to register to vote for the November elections, but the ASUO won’t hang up its hat until the very end.
“We’re hoping in these last few days to register the most amount of people … this is our last big push,” ASUO Campus Outreach Coordinator Brian Allen said.
Still, those involved with getting the message out said they’ve been impressed with how well this election cycle has gone.
Eugene resident Dave Carvo became a University fixture during election cycles. He said he hopes to hold a stable campus role when students’s campus schedules get out of control.
“I feel it helps out … students’s chaotic class schedules when I’m here consistently,” Carvo said.
Carvo is not connected directly with the ASUO in getting out the vote, but he said he is trying to help with its efforts.
The state of Oregon allows any unaffiliated individual to hand out voting registration forms, which include personal information such as driver’s licence number, phone number and the last four digits of someone’s social security number.
Carvo said when he collects voter registration forms, he hands them into the student organizers.
Having been on campus for the past few elections, Carvo said he’s been impressed with the work the ASUO has done this year.
“They have been doing a fabulous job,” Carvo said.
He said he has noticed their presence on campus has increased this year.
“(The drive has been) more noticeable this election cycle,” Carvo said. “The number (of voter registration forms) I’ve gotten has gone down significantly.”
ASUO Events Coordinator Molly Bennison said groups on campus have been helpful in the process.
“Groups and programs have been really supportive of having us speak announcements at their weekly meetings,” Bennison said.
Although ASUO members have noticed a decrease in excitement for this mid-term election compared to the presidential election of 2008, they have been impressed with the drive’s accomplishments.
“I think that presidential elections always have more hype around them because it’s national; everyone knows about it. It’s on the news more, but compared to last year’s special elections, I think the vote drive has gone really well,” Bennison said.
Still, soon-to-be ASUO Executive Chief of Staff Ben Eckstein added this election may hold more importance to students because of two primary issues.
Eckstein cited a $3 billion state budget deficit and added that when budgets are tight, higher education faces the most severe challenges.
“(Students receive) less need-based financial aid and students may have a hard time getting classes they want when they want them,” he said.
The other main issue he mentioned was University restructuring, a proposal University President Richard Lariviere has been making to the Oregon University System.
“It will be especially important to have students in that conversation,” Eckstein said.
Eckstein also said that while ballots must be in to the Lane County Elections Office by 5 p.m., students should turn their ballots into the ASUO office in the EMU by 4 p.m. if they want the ASUO to deliver their form to the Lane County Elections office.
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