The Story

The SA Wants YOU - to Register to Vote in Williamsburg

Sep. 6, 2008 | By Timothy Siverd, DSJ Staff Reporter

SA volunteers have been registering students to vote throughout campus. Photo by Marina Stranieri.

As November and the 2008 Presidential Election approach, the Student Assembly is doing its part to register William and Mary students in Williamsburg; in the week and a half since the semester started, the drive has registered 400 students in Williamsburg.

SA President Valerie Hopkins (’09), Senate Chair Walter McClean (’09), and Secretary for Public Affairs David Witkowsky (’11) are teaming up in an effort to register new and returning students to vote.

“[The SA’s] mission was, and has always been, to get as many able and willing students registered to vote in their new home of Williamsburg as possible.” Said Witkowsky. “The drive has certainly been successful. We have registered significantly more freshman this year than we did last year in the same time period.”

William and Mary students come from all over the state and country. Many incoming freshmen, already 18 when they arrive, have registered to vote in their home county or state. The SA focuses not only on convincing unregistered students to register, but also on convincing students registered elsewhere to switch to Williamsburg.

“This is where students legitimately live during their four years at the College.” Witkowsky explained. “Local laws in Williamsburg affect them more than whatever the laws are back where their parents live. It’s their civic duty to have a say in the decisions that determine these laws.”

Students are also able to register in Williamsburg without, for example, losing the ability to be a dependent on their parents’ tax return.

“For the sake of voting, the local registrar allows students to choose their residency.” McClean explained. “The Code of Virginia states you need abode, or [to be] physically living here, which we all do, and domicile, which is determined solely by the registrar. Williamsburg’s current registrar, Winifred Sowder, has determined that all students, both in-state and out-of-state, have domicile and therefore can register to vote in Williamsburg.”

Williamsburg’s previous registrar, Dave Andrews, did not let William and Mary students vote in Williamsburg; he claimed they did not have domicile because most local students don’t have local cell phones and local bank accounts. The 07 - 08 school year was the first time College students were allowed to register locally.

Although the SA will register voters of any age, the current registration drive is targeting freshman, specifically through orientation events.

“I would love to see voter registration expanded to cover more orientation events and even become a program given by OAs and RAs.” Said McClean. "This focus on younger voters means that over many years, we keep our voting numbers strong by constantly replacing the ‘lost voters’ that have graduated with new voters.”

McClean stressed that “student voting is not about one issue or one candidate [because the student community is] best served by growing its numbers continuously.”

Although orientation has ended, the SA’s voter registration drive is still going in full force. The SA will continue to register voters until the cut-off date of October 6; any individuals interested in registering to vote in Williamsburg should see a member of the SA or keep an eye out for their events.

The SA isn’t the only student organization looking to register voters this year. Groups like William and Mary Students for Barack Obama are holding events of their own to draw students and register them to vote locally.

Last year, voter registration efforts were concentrated around MTV’s Rock The Vote. The program paid students at W&M 10 dollars for every student they registered to vote in Williamsburg. Matt Beato, a class of 2009 Senator, also registered students on campus as a part of his campaign for City Council.

Students who want to vote this November must register by October 6 for their forms to be processed in time. The website of the Williamsburg Registrar lists the exact time for registration cut-off as 5:00 p.m.