After an intense few weeks of campaigning and a persistent focus on Wisconsin, Feb. 17 has arrived and candidates are making their absolute final pushes throughout the state to gain those last few straggling votes.

With candidate campaign visits, students have been surrounded, like it or not, by posters, signs and rallies. Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, Sen. John Kerry, Sen. John Edwards and Rep. Dennis Kucinich have all made recent stops in Madison urging University of Wisconsin students to vote while also emphasizing views pertinent to the college-age group. Student support groups have rallied for their respective hopefuls and have passed out candidate information sheets left and right.

In the meantime, a nationwide push for voters in the 18 to 30 age group, “20 Million Loud,” is also underway as MTV’s “Choose or Lose 2004.” This goal has been deemed achievable in the eyes of many who are simply urging young adults to speak their minds — to make their opinion known on the ballot. Youth organizations including Rock the Vote, Hip-Hop Team Vote, Smack Down Your Vote, New Voters Project, Declare Yourself and organizations in the Youth Vote Coalition are all pushing for new young voters within 20 Million Loud.”

Students often opt out of voting for various reasons; however, these reasons are just not good enough in the eyes of the millions pushing for those extra 3 million votes this year.

MTV’s 20 Million Loud is hoping to raise the number of 18- to 30-year-old voters from 17 million to 20 million this time around, and now it’s Wisconsin’s turn to pitch in.

Candidates have placed such a strong focus on Madison and have packed rallies and shaken the hands of thousands of students of supporters. These presidential hopefuls are now urging one thing in return: a vote.

For many, electability is the main issue at hand. “Who is going to get George W. out of office?” is running through many students’ heads. However, that is not to say Madison’s faithful Republicans are not showing interest in this Democratic election here today.

Madisonians, for one last day, expect that push from supporters and choose whether to silently voice your opinion on the ballot or not. In the end, the candidates can only do so much. The action has now officially shifted to the students and citizens of Wisconsin.