Since she took office as SGA president in May, Emma Simson has made registering students to vote in Tuesday’s Democratic primary a major goal in her presidency.
But now, Student Government Association officials are struggling to finish the print and online versions of their planned voter’s guide after a string of setbacks to registration this summer.
Simson said the SGA is currently unsure of how to distribute the voter’s guide that would feature statements from candidates in an attempt to educate student voters. Because their website’s server is down due to technical difficulties, the SGA is unsure whether the guide will be online today as scheduled.
“We are working on our website and we want to have it up and running soon,” Chief Policy Advisor Melissa Boudreau said.
The SGA had originally decided to release fewer print versions of the guide in order to save money and because the online version will increase accessibility to the guide by students. Simson said the SGA was still discussing how to distribute the document if the server is not repaired in time.
The voter’s guide’s difficulties ride on the heels of the poor registration numbers this summer. The SGA, in collaboration with Maryland Votes, a statewide nonprofit organization, registered only 554 students this summer – just more than half of their target number.
The SGA’s campaign to mobilize students took another blow in late August, when the Maryland State Court of Appeals ruled early voting unconstitutional.
Simson said early voting would have allowed more students to cast their ballots because it can be difficult for students to make it to the polls on one day.
“A lot of that has to do with hectic schedules and not having a car,” Simson said.
Because of elimination of early voting, the SGA will no longer be providing vans to shuttle students to polling locations, which were moved onto the campus.
Despite the difficulties with registering for the primary, Simson said the SGA is far from finished rallying student involvement in area politics. She will push to register students for the Nov. 7 election and afterwards meet with Vice President of Student Affairs Linda Clement to discuss ways of increasing student activism.
“I think you set your goals high, recognize your barriers and look at how to overcome them,” Simson said. “Increasing civic engagement is a long-term goal, not just for this year.”
Contact reporter Steven Overly at overlydbk@gmail.com.
