Ready, set, vote!

National Voter Registration Day hits HSU

Representatives working with Humboldt’s League of Women Voters tabled at the Humboldt State University library on Tuesday for National Voter Registration Day.

With national elections just around the corner, Vincent Thomas, environmental resources engineering senior and receptionist for Associated Students, urged library visitors to register.

“Voting gives you the right to complain about what’s going on,” Thomas said. “If you don’t vote, you can’t complain.”

Beside Thomas sat Margaret Augustine, a 20-year-old Eureka resident and member of the League of Women Voters. Augustine simply wanted to provide students with information on how to vote.

“It’s non-partisan,” Augustine said. “We just get people to vote and express their opinion.”

According to National Voter Registration Day’s website, the holiday has been held on the fourth Tuesday of every September since 2012. The holiday’s goal is simple: get people to vote. According to the site, 800,000 people registered to vote on the holiday in 2018.

The U.S. Census’ website also reports that 61.3% of U.S. citizens registered to vote in 2018, and 49% actually did so.

The lowest voter turnout in 2018 came from citizens between the ages of 18 and 24, at 30.1%. Voter turnout increased with age, with the highest voter turnout from citizens between 65 and 74, at 65.6%.

Thomas emphasized that voting gives citizens a voice.

“Just getting people to register to vote so they have that option to vote if they need to is very important,” Thomas said. “We want to get as many people to have their voices heard as possible.”

At midday on Tuesday, Thomas said around a dozen individuals had registered.

“Most of the students who have come by said, ‘yeah, they’ve already got it done,’ which is pretty good,” Thomas said.

Thomas said registering only takes about five minutes. Outside of National Voter Registration Day, a prospective voter can register at their local election office or online at Vote.gov, an official website of the U.S. government that helps people figure out how to register. The nearest election office to HSU resides in Eureka at 2426 6th St.