Students Participate in Andrews University Vote Week

    From October 5-9, blue and red posters plastered around campus announced, ‘make your voice heard in 2020, vote week.’ The posters featured a QR code that students could scan to find an Andrews University webpage urging individuals to vote. The administration encouraged students to sign up to vote for the upcoming general election in the United States. There was a booth set up beside the Student Campus Center, where US citizens who were eighteen or older could register to vote.
   Anita Rutlin and Jane Raymond were at the booth. They were part of the League of Women Voters in Berrien and Cass county. It is a collective of individuals who are non-partisan and visit high schools and universities to raise awareness about voting among prospective new voters.
    Ms. Rutlin, president for the Berrien and Cass County League of Women Voters said, “Voting week was established by the Student Life office and Michael Nixon so that students can register to vote during this week.” Concerning why she decided to be a part of the Berrien and Cass County League of Women Voters she stated, “It is important to be an informed and educated voter.”
    Many young individuals are deciding to vote this year in the election on November 3, and Andrews students have signed up on and off-campus. When asked about his experience registering to vote for the general election at Andrews, Arthur Nagy (graduate, theology) stated that “it was okay due to his schedule and class periods. [He] was thankful for the opportunity to come and register because he did not have class on Friday. It is great that voting week at AU was a week instead of just one day.”
    Indeed, many students are grateful that Andrews is encouraging students to vote and make their voices heard. Lily Burke (sophomore, anthropology and english) said, “If you are eligible, to vote in this upcoming election is not only your right, but it is your duty. I want to encourage potential voters to think of the people who have fought and sacrificed, in diverse ways, for us to have this right, and also to think of the people who don’t have the right to vote. I want us eligible voters to internalize how much of a privilege the right to vote is, and to recognize that it is their duty to exercise that right.” It is clear that some critical issues and topics are at stake in this election, and your vote will affect the U.S. for the next four years and beyond.