Louisiana’s online voter registration for the state’s upcoming House of Representatives election ended Tuesday.
Campaigns were held to increase voter registrations of young people, specifically college students. Even former President Barrack Obama ran an ad on social media detailing why young people should vote.
“We are the next generation of the country, if we want this country to change for what we feel is the better we can’t stand idle by and witness policy changes or people getting into office we don’t approve of,” said Daulton Jennings, a sophomore biology and modern language double major.
Jennings said a pet peeve of his is people complaining about policy changes or politics who still refuse to vote.
The U.S. House of Representatives elections in Louisiana will take place on Nov. 6. All candidates are eligible to run in the general election, regardless of party affiliations. Those who registered will vote six candidates to serve in the House of Representatives.
According to cenus.gov, people aged 18 to 24 have the lowest rates of voting and registration, this age group includes a majority of college students.
That same website also saw a correlation between education and registration. The higher the education level the higher the voting and registration rates.
Voter turnout for years that don’t involve a presidential race always have a lower turnout than those who do.
Charles Riddick, a junior communication major, said he hasn’t been as politically informed, and that’s why he didn’t register for the November election.
“I’m honestly too busy with school, two jobs and extracurricular activities to pay attention to that right now,” Riddick said.
Riddick added that as a voter, one has a responsibility to be as informed as much as possible on the candidates before voting. He said even after registering, he wouldn’t vote until he was 100 percent educated on the current election.
College student voting rose in the 2016 compared to the 2012 election.