The 2008 presidential campaign is drawing to an end, and now more than ever, young people have the power to influence the vote. While voting may be an undeniable right, it has not always been executed. In 1971, the 26th amendment changed the voting age, allowing anyone 18 and older to participate in the process. Unfortunately, in the following decade, many adolescents did not take advantage of this right, and youth voting levels remained disturbingly low.

With the excitement of this election and the elections in previous years, students have become increasingly more interested and engaged in the political arena. However, the issues we care about are still not in the forefront. The University of Wisconsin’s Vote Coalition works to make sure the youth turnout rate does not mimic those of the ’70s and early ’80s. The members of Vote Coalition are encouraging the youth of UW to get engaged and voice their opinions by getting out to the polls.

Together, the five campus groups involved — Associated Students of Madison, India Students Association, United Council, UW Student Nursing Association and the Wisconsin Student Public Interest Research Group’s New Voters Project — have registered over 3,100 students through tabling events, online registrations at Studentvote.org and class announcements. Despite these efforts and those of the many other voter registration groups, there are still plenty of UW students who still need to register!

All it takes is five extra minutes of your time. Fortunately this year, the New Voters Project is making registering unavoidable with the upcoming blitz drive: three-and-a-half days of intense voter registration happening Sunday, Oct. 12 through Wednesday, Oct. 15. With less than five days left to register before the blackout begins on Wednesday, Oct. 15 at 5 p.m., those not yet registered to vote should be getting nervous! You don’t want to have to walk up to the city clerk’s office to register in person or wait in line on Election Day with a proof of residence while your friends show up and vote in short, hassle-free lines.

We are lucky we are not facing the same voter discrimination other students in the nation are facing. For example, out-of-state students at universities in Virginia are being threatened with losing financial aid if they register to vote at their school address. In South Carolina, college students must demonstrate “a present intention to remain in the community” if they want to register. This is simply ridiculous! Students have the right to vote wherever they live as long as they are members of that community. Every student should be thankful the University of Wisconsin and the city of Madison are not imposing any silly restrictions on us, and we should take advantage of the civic right we have.

Next Sunday through Wednesday, members from the Vote Coalition will be stationed all over campus, allowing ample opportunity for students to register. We will be standing in high-traffic areas during passing time: down at Library Mall, giving class announcements and going door-to-door in the local neighborhoods. If you continue to pass volunteers from Vote Coalition on the streets, brushing them off even though you may not have registered yet, you are putting yourself at a disadvantage come Nov. 4. If you really don’t have five minutes to stop and fill out a registration form, do it online at Studentvote.org, print it out and turn it in to one of the volunteers. Remember, if your address has changed since August, you need to re-register.

So wake up! Don’t be that kid who has to stand in a long line on Nov. 4 because you were too lazy to take five minutes to register now. The Vote Coalition is making it simple for you by handing you the opportunity. Now you just have to take it.

Matthew Wendt ([email protected]) is chair of Vote Coalition 2008.