In preparation for the rapidly approaching Election Day on Nov. 3, student leaders of POWER University (POWERU) started the #WhyIVote campaign to educate St. Joe’s students on voting.
“Our emphasis is helping increase young voter turnout because that is one of the growing demographics,” said Veronika Nemeth ’21, POWERU student leader and #WhyIVote founder.
POWERU is a student organization on campus dedicated to facilitating social change. Nemeth said she started the #WhyIVote campaign this year because she wanted St. Joe’s students to recognize how voting can be a very personal act in the upcoming election.
“I think [to] a lot of people, when they turn 18, [voting is] kind of a chore that they feel obligated to do,” Nemeth said. “We want to change that mindset.”
Nemeth said the #WhyIVote campaign is a collaboration between POWERU and Campus Ministry. The two organizations are working together to reach a larger group of students.
Keely Nilan ’22, a communications peer minister in Campus Ministry, said that the partnership aligns well with the Jesuit mission.
“We’re a Jesuit campus and one of the beliefs [is] justice,” Nilan said. “Part of justice is voting, so it’s not just believing in things, it’s doing something with that belief.”
The campaign mainly reaches students through POWERU’s and Campus Ministry’s Instagram pages, with posts emphasizing the importance of voting and information on how to register to vote, Nemeth said.
“Social media stood out as one of the obvious ways [of reaching people] because that’s really been a powerful tool over the past couple months in terms of sharing information and testimonies,” Nemeth said.
Elizabeth Sweeney ’21, a member of POWERU and participant in the #WhyIVote campaign, said the main goal is to simplify the voting process for college-aged voters.
“College students are busy and it’s all confusing, so I think POWERU is trying to be that voice on campus that helps students with their ballots, answers questions and helps connect them to their polling places if they’re local,” Sweeney said.
Sweeney said that she votes because of all those in history who fought for suffrage in the U.S.
“I do it as a homage to them,” Sweeney said. “I think of the marches on Selma, and I think of the passing of the Voting Rights Act and how people really committed their entire lives, and risked their lives, for this.”
Sweeney said she wants the campaign to remind students that voting is the most basic way to keep our democracy thriving. She hopes that in seeing why their peers vote through this campaign, it will “make voting cool again.”
The campaign also strives to promote informed voting, Nemeth said. These social media posts are meant to inspire individuals to educate themselves about the presidential candidates as well.
“I think we have to recognize that we should not expect people to be able to have all the knowledge in the world about voting, so I hope that we can make voting easy,” Sweeney said. “Overall [we want to] make students see how it does have a significant impact and it is our civic responsibility.”
To promote #WhyIVote, Campus Ministry leaders are talking about the campaign within their programs and groups, according to Nilan.
“We’ve been having conversations with peer ministers who do a lot with freshmen and do a lot with retreats, so spreading the word within ourselves,” Nilan said. “And then from there, sharing it with everybody else that we interact with.”
While the campaign is still in its infancy, Nemeth said she hopes to expand #WhyIVote by tabling for registration or giving presentations to student organizations on essential voting information. Overall, Nemeth said she and POWERU want young people to realize the significance of their right to vote.
Sweeney said she’s proud to be a part of the campaign because she said voting is a way to facilitate social change, especially now.
“I would say that any social change does come from an individual,” Sweeney said. “It’s easy to feel small and insignificant, and yes in some respects one singular vote isn’t going to change everything, but if everyone has that mindset, then that creates a chain of effect where no change happens.”
