Rho Kappa Voter Registration Drive: a Success

Volunteers Register Estimated 60 Students Throughout Monday

Callie Copeland

Volunteers lined up with computers to help with Rho Kappa’s annual voter registration drive. These volunteers were able to register an estimated 60 new voters.”It is so important for seniors to register to vote, because it shows [America’s] true democracy,” Rho Kappa President, senior Alyssa Fielding said.

Callie Copeland, Reporter
September 26, 2018

In the spirit of National Voter Registration Day, Rho Kappa hosted their annual voting drive on Tuesday and registered an estimated 60 students.

With their tables situated in the courtyard, volunteers lined up with computers ready to help those registering. Junior Erin Barry said that volunteering at the drive was her way of serving her country before she was able to vote. 

“It’s important that [the seniors] have the opportunity to share their opinion by participating in our government,” Barry said.

Many seniors arrived with their driver’s licenses ready, eager to register. Having celebrated her 18th birthday just last week, senior Kendyl Morris said this was one of her first steps to becoming an adult.

“[Politics] is a really present thing in my household, and maybe my views don’t always line up with my mom or my sister,” Morris said. “So it’s important now that I have that voice to say something and make decisions on my own.”

This year, big names like Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Beto O’Rourke are seen in front lawns across Cedar Park, but smaller government positions sometimes go unnoticed. While Morris said that she became exposed to politics through her government class, senior Jaelyn Hudson said that watching her parents vote has given her the opportunity to research  candidates.

Hudson said that in the past when her parents would go to the polls, she would research the candidates and make a hypothetical decision on who she would vote for. Now there are no hypotheticals, and Hudson said she’s already doing research to cast her ballot.

“[Voting this year] should be interesting,” Hudson said. “I’m still kind of contemplating who I want to vote for.”

Like Morris and Hudson, not every student at the registration drive knew who they would vote for. But one thing was certain- they will head to the polls this November.

“I will!” Morris said. “I think it’s really important.”

While the 60 student turnout at the drive did not meet Rho Kappa’s 100 percent goal, they were able to recruit a new generation of voters.

“The greatest thing about our government is that we have a say in it,” Rho Kappa president, senior Alyssa Fielding said. “And we should all be very active in the role we play in our it. We are the future, and we are the next generation determining what’s happening in the government.”

Fielding said that by registering seniors, we can ensure that the future generation of voters will be involved in the United States’ democracy and be able to take more control over their own lives.

“If we aren’t teaching the rising generation to be in politics, we are in a way taking democracy out of our own hands,” Fielding said.

The deadline for voter registration in Texas is Oct. 9, and midterm election day is Nov. 6. Visit this link for more information on county-specific candidates, and click here to check voter registration status.