As the Madison spring primary approaches, City Council candidates are looking for a strong student-voter turnout at the polls. However, students are typically stereotyped as apathetic toward politics, and many do not even vote.
Many are concerned and say a traditionally politically active University of Wisconsin student body has evolved into one of indifference.
“On the aggregate, I’d say that students are a bit more apathetic than the general population, but that’s somewhat misleading. While there is a significant group of people who show no interest in politics, there are still a large number of students who are very politically active,” said Benjamin Krautkramer, first vice chairman of College Republicans.
According to Steven Singh, chair of College Democrats, the fall general election saw a 35 percent student-voter turnout, and he says he sees a large number of students holding rallies and working for political campaigns despite the freezing temperatures.
The key to getting even more of these politically active students is to relate to their lives and the issues that affect them most, according to Austin King, District 8 City Council candidate.
“Students aren’t apathetic when they feel a connection to politics and the issues being addressed and are more active when they are personally affected by the decisions,” he said.
Frank Harris, another District 8 City Council candidate, said encountering tenants’-rights issues in his living situation drove him to be more involved in the Madison political scene.
However, while he made an effort to make some changes instead of merely complaining about the situation, his six roommates did nothing.
“I think this is a representative sample of students. Everybody complains — whether it is a tenants’-rights issue or a larger national issue — but very few take action,” Harris said.
Several issues may be partially responsible for the decreased number of politically active students; however, many students sited a detachment from Madison politics.
According to the university website, more than 37 percent of UW students are from outside Wisconsin. Some of these students may feel they don’t have a connection to local politics, Singh said.
“Everything seems so distant, especially since I am from Minnesota. I don’t think my opinion really matters here,” senior John Keil said.
Another Minnesotan shared this sense of disconnect.
“I used to follow politics closely in Minneapolis, especially local politics, but I am getting almost apathetic from being here on campus. Campus seems like an enclave secluded from the real world,” freshman Caitlin Riese said.
Candidates can combat this trend and get students involved by coming to campus to address the issues important to students and recruit volunteers for their campaigns. The candidates that will see the best results at the polls are those that work the most with students, Singh said.
“I think more students would pay attention if candidates built a relationship with us and if candidates were more to the point on the issues important to us,” senior Rebecca Vegge said.
Some of these important issues students want to see candidates address include tuition, alcohol-related issues, sexual assault, other safety issues, the job market, the economy and tenants’ rights.
“If candidates tune into students, students’ interest in politics will turn on,” King said.
It is true across all demographic categories that voter turnout is higher for presidential elections than for local elections, Singh said. But students need to recognize that they have a greater effect on local elections and that local elections address the issues that affect students’ daily lives.
Riese said she follows local elections for the aforementioned reasons. “I prefer city elections because you can actually meet the candidates and it’s more personal, like you’re really doing something. National elections are just so huge it feels like you can’t really make any difference.”
The importance of student involvement in politics cannot be overstated, Singh said.
“This university has a great tradition of political activism and is one of the things that makes this campus great. I hope to see this level of political activity continue and even increase,” Singh said.