Active Democracy in Action at Ames Community College and Northern Colorado ahead of November Elections

For some voting advocates this year, political candidates and voting issues are in many ways less important than raising awareness of the fundamental right to vote and the power behind it.

In an era of political division in the US, where fear, misinformation and accusations of voter suppression often dictate conversation rather than policy, the simple and basic act of anonymously voting is now linked to a mental health threat.

The relatively recent proliferation of social media has brought these issues to the forefront of modern elections. But a new group of voters, adult students and their leaders, are ignoring party politics and focusing on civics education.

“We’re trying to help people get civic information,” said Julia Martin, a 22-year-old political science graduate. “This includes our younger voters and blocs that are often not registered to vote. Increasing the number of registered to vote attempts to open the eyes of politicians – we matter too. Active democracy is the most important thing. Your voice matters and determines how your state develops.”

The same mission appears to be at work at Ames Community College. Both schools were honored by the national organization that recognizes colleges and universities for voter turnout.

The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge was founded in 2016 to empower colleges and universities to achieve excellence in nonpartisan student democratic engagement.

UNC received Gold Medal status from the ALL IN Democracy Challenge for turning out 45.3% of student voters in the 2022 midterm elections. In 2020, nearly 80% of students on campus voted. UNC aims to reach 85% of student voters. year.

Voter turnout is typically higher in presidential election years.

Aims received Silver Awards from ALL IN for student participation in 2020 and 2022. The college reported student voting rates of 37.1% in 2022 and 69.2% in 2020.

“We’re doing everything we can to increase it (the number of voters),” said Becca Herman, director of undergraduate programs at Aims and chair of the college’s civic engagement council.

Colorado State political science professor Kyle Saunders said the 18-29 age group traditionally votes at lower rates than other, older, eligible voting groups. But educational attainment is an influential factor in voting among all age groups, as education will allow voters to access opportunities and social systems that illustrate the influence and importance of voting.

A year-old UNC organization called the Bears Vote Coalition is implementing the school’s plan for voting and civic engagement initiatives that lead to inclusion in the ALL IN Democracy Challenge. Bears Vote was also created to stimulate debate on campus and monitor related activities. More than 50 people have registered for Bears Vote this semester, according to Dean of Student Development Colleen Sonnentag.

“We want our students to explore their political beliefs and exercise their rights while here,” Sonnentag said. “We know many of our students are voting in their first presidential election, and it can be exciting, but full of unknowns.”

A Colorado student who attends a local school, such as UNC or Aims, can vote in their home district by mail, although election officials now caution against mailing ballots so close to Election Day because they must be received before then. how the voting results will be calculated. .

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Carly Koppes said an out-of-state student may register to vote in colorado if they confirm their place of residence or commit to living here.

Koppes added that students should check whether the money they receive is tied to where they live.

All the political divisions and rhetoric surrounding elections in recent years have created a legitimately difficult and tense environment. Those at Aims and UNC deeply committed to elections and democracy acknowledge the current reality and have tried to help students and their campus communities cope with election tensions.

“We want to make sure that people can recognize and process what’s going on,” UNC’s Martin said. “We want people to feel comfortable and experience what’s going on. This election is causing a lot of tension about where people are on the political spectrum.”

UNC’s nonpartisan Bear Votes webpage has a section dedicated to election stress. Information includes tips and strategies such as phone numbers for counseling services at UNC and North Range Behavioral Health in Greeley.

Other tips suggested for managing election stress include limiting news and social media consumption, hanging out with friends, engaging in enjoyable activities, participating in community service, and learning how to have difficult conversations through participation in the Institute for Constructive Dialogue.

Alex Barger, a 19-year-old Ames sophomore from Eton, has witnessed a lot of stress from his peers about the election and the possibilities of what would happen if former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris won.

Barger, who uses they/them pronouns, identifies as gay and has many friends who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer.

“We college students have a hard time paying for things,” they said. “Many friends are concerned about whether Trump supports Project 2025 or not, and they feel they can’t trust the news anyway.”

While expressing some doubts about the power of voting and the legitimacy of US elections, Trump continues to falsely claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

President Joe Biden defeated Trump by 7 million votes in the popular vote. Trump falsely claimed the result was wrong, claiming the election was stolen from him. More than 60 court cases with judges appointed by Republicans and Trump have shown otherwise, according to the Campaign Legal Center website in Washington, D.C.

The Campaign Legal Center said it has investigated cases in Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona and other jurisdictions. Some were withdrawn by Trump’s lawyers before the court could rule, or the cases were dismissed on procedural grounds.

A 2023 poll conducted by The Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago found that 57% of Republicans believe Biden was not legitimately elected.

At Aims this fall, campus events programmer Jeff Thatch is focusing on organizing election-related events on the Greeley campus. Civic engagement is one of Thatch’s responsibilities. He serves on the college’s 4-year-old Civic Engagement Council, a nonpartisan group of Aims faculty, staff, students and community members.

“Our main goal is to try to get students to vote and be involved in the process,” Thatch said.

This fall, Thatch installed tables on campus with information for students about voting, and the UNC Bear Voting Coalition is also using the tables to reach students. Thatch said there were about 50 people registering at each table.

“It’s a good way to catch people,” Thatch said. “There was a significant percentage of people who wanted to know if they were registered to vote and how to register to vote.”

Thatch said the college has held events such as vote tabulations, which Herman said is a “loud version of Blue Book.” She referred to the color of the ballot information provided to Colorado voters.

Aims’ breakdown of the ballot focused on the issues and amendments on the ballot this year rather than information about the candidates. This is to avoid party affiliation, Thatch said.

Ballot breakdowns provide “simple” explanations and discussions of the issues on the ballots, including the meaning of up or down votes.

“It’s understanding where the money comes from if the money is approved,” Thatch said.

Within Barger’s peer group, there are two different views on voting and elections. Friends of Barger are politically active, interested in voting, the issues on the ballot and what voting means. Barger said other students think all politicians are fools and voting is useless.

“When I have the opportunity, I try to tell them about their thoughts on the subjects and the importance of voting,” Barger said. “We live in a democratic republic and voting matters, especially in local elections.”

Barger will vote for president for the first time this year. And while they are considering voting in person for such an important event, Barger is also an advocate for education and preparation for local elections.

“Don’t brush them off and do some research,” Barger said. “At the end of the day, this is the case for most of us. Government funding, educational policy. It’s a big deal and it’s important.”

The Ames and UNC locations are among Weld County’s voter service centers and polling locations. For more information on county polling locations, visit weld.gov/clerkrecorder/elections/waittimes.

Aims’ Cornerstone Building, 5401 W. 20th St. in Greeley, is available as a 24-hour ballot drop-off location, an in-person voting location and a location to register to vote, update your registration or receive a new ballot.

In-person voting hours are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on Friday, Saturday and Monday and 7:00 am to 7:00 pm on Election Day Tuesday, November 5th.

UNC Commons Campus, 1051 22nd St. in Greeley, both an in-person voting location and a website are available to register to vote, update your registration or receive a new ballot.

In-person voting hours are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on Friday, Saturday and Monday and 7:00 am to 7:00 pm on Tuesday.

A 24-hour ballot drop-off location is available at the UNC University Center, 2101 10th Ave. in Greeley. Reception of ballots began on October 11 and will end on Tuesday at 19:00.