New holiday aims to encourage voting

by Ben Rodgers

Sept. 23 marks one of the newest national holidays: National Voter Registration Day. Having only been celebrated for three years now, National Voter Registration Day is focused to make citizens aware of voter registration possibilities.

To help celebrate the holiday on campus, Simpson Votes, a non-partisan campus group focused on voting awareness, will be setting up shop in Kent Campus Center encouraging Simpson College students to register from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“I will have registration forms and absentee ballots, along with information about the upcoming election on Nov. 4,” MacKenzie Bills, president of Simpson Votes, said.

The members of Simpson Votes hope to get Simpson students registered to vote as early as possible before the Nov. 4 Election Day draws closer.

“It’s better to get it done sooner than later,” junior Molly Monk said. “Same day registration can be a little messy sometimes so get it done in advance, especially with issues coming up like student loans, PELL Grants and other issues related to student finances.”

Bills says her group tries to push for students to register to vote in Warren County because of its unique political nature.

“Warren County is a county that can go either way,” Bills said. “It’s important for some big state and national races congressional races. We really have a lot going on here compared to other places.”

Bills and the other members of Simpson Votes plan to help push awareness of the holiday over social media by using the hashtag: #myvotematters.

“I’m trying to get the word out on my account and telling other students to do so as well,” Bills said.

Bill’s believes using social media can be a helpful tool in spreading the word of the importance of civic engagement among college students.

“It shows that we’re all in this together and you’re not just one number, but you’re helping change our country,” Bills said. “It shows that we millennials care and want to have an input.