Because of the organizational efforts of Saman Baghestani, pictured above with an unidentified SMCC student, all SMCC community members had the opportunity to cast their ballots on November 4th.

By Erik Squire

Why does registering youth voters matter? Maine has one of the lowest voter turnouts and registration numbers in the entire country for the youth bracket, 18-29. When students register to vote, that sends a signal to congress and our elected officials that our voice is loud. The louder our voice becomes, the more attention our concerns will get. Also, voting is important for the simple reason that it is our primary means to participate in democracy.

What was the turnout for SMCC’s voter registration drive? The turnout was better than expected! Most faculty and staff were already registered, and despite the thick wool blanket of apathy covering the eyes of so many students, we hit our goal of 100 registrations. We officially registered 142 students!

Is there a plan to host another one before Election Day? Perhaps. Depending on the amount of volunteer support I’m able to round up between now and the third week of October, we might have another big push around the week of Election Day. Let this be a call for volunteers: those interested in participating in this kind of activity, email samanbaghestani@smccme.edu.

Who was responsible for setting up SMCC’s voter registration drive? I led the entire effort at SMCC. I began by writing a plan, then making a survey of potential partners to work with. I began by reaching out to Shane Long, who proved, as he always does, to be a huge help. He brought in facilities to help setup a nice space on the lawn in front of Howe Hall. He also made sure our tables would be ready to go, and he provided large signage and other things like pens and tape – the small but very crucial items without which success would not have happened. From there, Sodexo got involved by baking 200 cookies and individually wrapping them, topped off with a sticker saying “I registered to vote”. Thank you Jannifer and Sodexo for this awesome support! Finally, thank you to all the volunteers who helped person the table: Sineah McGrady, Emily Mockler, Emily Baker, Jason Glynn, Dierdree Glassford, Benjamin Bussierre, and the PTK Honors Society for holding their meeting at the registration table.