Story Highlights

• There was concern that voter turnout might be low.
• The UGA College Republicans and Young Democrats are working hard to get student voters to the polls.
• They handed out flyers, ran phone banks and went door to door asking for support.

With the November 4 general election approaching, the College Republicans and Young Democrats of the University of Georgia have stepped up their student outreach program in hopes to get students to the polls.

Afraid that voter turnout would be low in Athens, the political groups worked overtime to get students who would likely not vote to go out to the polls. UGA student Rory Hibbler says that most of her friends do not really care about midterm elections and won’t be voting.

“Most of them (friends) don’t plan to vote in the upcoming election,” said Hibbler. “I could probably count on one hand the number of friends I have that are going to vote.”

Since many college students haven’t voted before, the groups have helped students register to vote or have helped them fill out an absentee ballot.

The groups have stood outside freshman dorms handing out flyers and talking to students encouraging them to vote. They have also run phone banks and gone door to door to reach students who live off campus or even non students.

“We wanted to meet the people where they are,” Abbie Frye, Director of Public Relations for the College Republicans at UGA, said. “We made people aware of the election and the importance of voting and then giving them the opportunity to register.”

So far their efforts have paid off as the downtown Board of Elections Office has been busy with early voters. Early voting ends October 31.