Thanks to intense campaigning by NYPIRG, numerous e-mails and constant coverage in campus media, last week’s referendum had one of the highest student voter turnouts in recent memory.

About 27 percent of the student population voted in the referendum, according to Student Association statistics. The other 73 percent was not accounted for.

‘One of the real problems with lower youth voter turnout is that they feel left out of the political process,’ said Sean Vormwald, project coordinator for the New York Public Interest Research Group in Syracuse. ‘There are a lot of college students who want to get involved and to make a difference, but they don’t know how.’

From campus issues and elections to presidential elections, college students and those with a bachelor’s degree are consistently among the least active voting groups in the country, according to reports from The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

In the 2000 presidential election, approximately 12.1 million women and 11.8 million men aged 18 to 24 voted in the election, CIRCLE reports stated. Only 50 percent of females and 47 percent of males aged 18 to 25 believe, however, they can make a great deal of difference in the political arena, and only 60 percent of the 18 to 25 age group is registered to vote.

Jeffrey M. Stonecash, professor of American politics, said college students are just not paying attention. While there may be pockets of activism, he feels it is limited.

‘I don’t know if I want to call it apathetic. College students are just not well informed,’ Stonecash said. ‘They are consumed by college and are not as engaged, but this is not atypical.’

Stonecash attributes the belief that college students are extremely politically active to the generation of the 1960s. But he said this generation is actually very atypical and were active because they were concerned with the draft and had to react to make change.

Andrew Lederman, president of SA, agreed.

‘I think the campus atmosphere has changed a lot in the last 30 years,’ Lederman said. ‘It’s just not like that anymore.’

Other politically active students agreed that participation was low, but maintained that it is there.

‘If you care you can find a group on campus,’ said Ryan W. Colombo, a senior political science and management major and president of the College Republicans. ‘There are plenty of ways to get involved.’

One particularly active group on campus is the SU Generation Dean. The organizers registered the group online at GenerationDean.com as many college students across the country have done, applying for and receiving recognition as a student organization by the Student Association two weeks ago.

‘It’s a pretty big challenge to get people to come and listen,’ Milton said. ‘We are trying to think of creative ways to attract people, such as getting a high profile pro-Dean speaker.’

Milton said a main reason students are disengaged is because while the candidates are addressing the right issues, the way they are addressing them is wrong. He said many young people feel as though they are being talked down to by the candidates.

Other groups, such as the Student Environmental Action Coalition, take a more active and radical approach than many of the other campus organizations through the use of rallies, protests and teach-ins. They also take on many controversial issues such as their environmental justice and anti-militarization campaigns.

‘There are definitely a good number of kids who are politically active and a good number of others who are aware but don’t have the time to be involved,’ said Jake Eichten, a sophomore sociology major and member of SEAC.

SEAC focuses on ending environmental racism and bring similar topics to the forefront of campus political discussions.

When it comes to municipal races, it seems students are even less interested.

‘I think it is very important for students to vote where they go to school,’ said Jessica Klos, a junior political science and philosophy major and president of the College Democrats. ‘It is where they stay the majority of their year.’

Klos said she tries to educate students on campus to get them more interested in local politics. The important thing is not where students vote, just that they end up voting.

Colombo said he believes that low student voter turnout can be blamed on a busy student life and a lack of interest in the local politics.

‘I think students are more interested in doing what they are doing,’ Colombo said. ‘It is hard to get them excited about an assemblymen election.’

Published on February 18, 2004 at 12:00 pm