With the recent news of burned ballots, campus closures and confirmation that the Harris-Walz Election Night would occur on The Yard, this election year saw a range of emotions among first-time student voters.
This year, deadlines for absentee ballots varied by individual states. In Washington, D.C., mail-in absentee ballot applications were to be postmarked and received 15 days before Election Day. Voters also cast their ballots through in-person voting centers at their nearest public school, recreational center, library or other public facility.
Ranyia Cox, a junior business management major from East St. Louis, Illinois, said she voted by mail this year.
“I wanted to make sure that there were no issues, like [the ballot] got straight to the post office and, on top of that, it got postmarked, because they do have a deadline for them to be sent off,” she said.
Jalon Morrison, a freshman accounting major from Queens, also used an absentee ballot to vote in this year’s election. He said he was concerned about his ballot’s transmission.
“I’d say my only concern was my ballot going missing, if that happened, or getting lost in the mail,” he said.
This concern was prompted by the hundreds of burned ballots from the targeted fires in Portland mailboxes, leaving many first-time voters at Howard skeptical about the security of their votes.
Although he shared similar concerns with Cox, Morrison found the process of casting his ballot without assistance from experienced voters very easy.
To provide a similar experience for others, student organizations such as the Howard University Student Association (HUSA) hosted initiatives to assist first-time voters. HUSA’s Government Affairs and Policy Department held absentee ballot workshops in West Towers, Axis, Bethune Annex, HUSA Office and the College of Engineering and Architecture.
The HUSA Senate also hosted several initiatives, including “Signed, Sealed and Delivered,” a stamp and envelope drive for student voters, “Bison on the Ballot” in partnership with the Undergraduate Student Assembly (UGSA), “Stroll to the Polls,” “Midnight Brunch” with proof of registration as an entry requirement and “Bison on the Block.”
Jeremy Allman, a sophomore political science major from Queens, is the HUSA senator for the College of Arts and Sciences and chairman of the Lavender Committee. He said the initiatives ensured the student body was proactive, understood the importance of voting and enjoyed the freedom of their voices and votes.
According to survey results from HUSA’s events, 79 percent of students were first-time voters and 93 percent already voted as of Oct. 1. With a total of 128 students in attendance, 83 percent of students surveyed felt they knew how to cast their vote and 90 percent knew how to register in their state.
Other voters who did not choose to use an absentee ballot returned to their home state to vote.
“I voted last weekend in person in New York City—where I am from—in Queens. It was a really wholesome experience because it was my mom’s first time voting, although she has been registered for a couple of years,” Allman said.
Allman’s experiences back home illustrate a shift in the way young first-time voters are encouraging older generations to vote. This highlights the political impact Gen Zers are leaving within marginalized groups, one family at a time.
Exclusion, however, is not a new feeling for international students during election season. Chinaza Nwabufo, a junior computer information systems major from Anambra, Nigeria, shared her experience as an outsider at this time.
“On one hand, I can’t vote, so that already gives a feeling of ‘I can’t really do anything about it,’ and sometimes I wonder if I’m allowed to post about it, because technically I cannot vote,” she said.
Though Nwabufo couldn’t vote due to her status, she was able to develop her political awareness by attending campaign rallies, advocating on social media and having discussions within her social circle about the importance of voting.
Copy edited by Jalyn Lovelady
