Record Broken – Students Register Most in Oregon History

PORTLAND, Ore. - Oct. 14, 2014 - PRLog -- Community college & university students in Oregon have surpassed their own goals and all other nonpartisan organizations doing voter registration in the state, registering over 55,000 students to vote for the 2014 midterm election at the time of this release. On 21 different campuses, students have been working with the Oregon Student Association, their statewide student association, on registering their fellow students to vote. Running the most regionally diverse voter registration drive in the state, students have registered voters in 25 cities and metropolitan areas across Oregon. Students will continue to work in the weeks to come educating students about the issues on the ballot and ensuring that they turn out to vote this fall.

“This voter registration drive reaches out and engages all students in the political process. We want all students in this state to have a voice and be able to impact positive change in their communities. We are building student power in this state so that our elected officials will prioritize the issues students care about, “ said Gabe Gardiner, a student at the University of Oregon and a lead volunteer on voter registration drive there. “ Students recorded-breaking engagement in this voter registration drive proves that students are not apathetic and that when we are reached out to, we will have our voices heard,” he added.

This drive was a significant improvement on previous midterm election registration efforts, with the Oregon Student Association beating its 2010 registration numbers, widely considered one of the high watermarks for youth turnout. The Oregon Student Association registered 34,000 students to vote in 2010.

“This campaign is so exciting because we have engaged more students in the electoral process than we ever have before, than anyone ever has before. This is setting a statewide and national precedence” Said Torii Uyehara, a student at Southern Oregon University and chair of the Statewide Student Vote Committee. Uyehara highlighted the importance of reaching out to all students on campus during the drive, “We made it one of our priorities this year to register students on our campuses that had been historically disenfranchised from the voting process. We engaged students from all communities, all walks of life, and all political viewpoints in this drive. We wanted to ensure that student knew the importance of voting and got registered to vote regardless of race, sex, socio-economic status, ethnicity, age, cultural background, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or ability. It is important to us that everyone has a chance for their voice to be heard.”

Oregon students plan to pursue advocacy in Salem as strongly as they did vote work. Uyehara hoped students registering and turning out to vote would build momentum across the state, “Students are a forced to be reckoned with. We expected our elected officials to prioritize higher education in the next legislative session and end the trend of state disinvestment. We need more affordable and accessible higher education in Oregon.”

Founded in 1975, the Oregon Student Association is a coalition of student governments dedicated to the representation, service, and protection of the collective interests of over 100,000 students in postsecondary education. OSA is a 501(c)(4) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization.