Subscribe
Advertisement
  • Subscribe To The Enterprise
  • Contact Us
Subscribe For $2.50/Month
Print Editions
The Enterprise
  • News
    • Local
    • Sports
    • Business
    • Education
    • Family
    • Community Calendar
    • Neighborhood News
    • State News
    • National News
  • Obituaries
  • Spiritual
    • Southern Baptist
    • Parabola
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia
  • eEnterprise
  • Legals
  • Contact
  • Account
  • Login
  • FAQ
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Local
    • Sports
    • Business
    • Education
    • Family
    • Community Calendar
    • Neighborhood News
    • State News
    • National News
  • Obituaries
  • Spiritual
    • Southern Baptist
    • Parabola
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia
  • eEnterprise
  • Legals
  • Contact
  • Account
  • Login
  • FAQ
No Result
View All Result
The Enterprise
No Result
View All Result

Uptick in Student Absentee Ballots Might Indicate Higher Turnout

Enterprise by Enterprise
October 22, 2019
in Opinions
0
0
SHARES
2
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

By Imani Thaniel

Capital News Service

RICHMOND — In addition to hitting the books this fall, more Virginia college students may hit the polls next month, according to the Virginia Department of Elections. 

Virginia Department of Elections data show that 10,923 students in Virginia have applied for absentee ballots this year. That’s more than double the number of absentee ballot applications (4,878) received in 2015, the last year all 140 seats were up for reelection in the General Assembly, according to Christopher Piper, commissioner of the department.

Residents (including students) have requested 66,219 applications for absentee voting, according to state election data. Records show that 62,605 absentee ballots were filed four years ago. As of today, the state has filed 24,766 absentee ballots; it remains to be seen how many more are returned.

Piper said absentee ballots have increased in popularity. Last year, voters submitted 287,763 absentee ballots, the highest number of votes in the state during a non-presidential election based on data available since 1976. The 2008 presidential election had the highest rate of absentee voting recorded in Virginia, with 506,672 absentee votes submitted.

“Using absentee voting is a good indicator of potential turnout, and if you look at previous elections and compare it to today there has been an increase in this election and overall,” Piper said.

Traditionally, voter turnout is highest during presidential elections and drops during state elections. For instance, 72% of registered voters participated in the 2016 presidential election, but turnout for the 2017 gubernatorial election fell to 48%. That same year, the second highest number of absentee votes, 496,452, were filed.

“We could potentially have a higher turnout due to the opposition within the 93rd and 94th House districts,” said Vicki Lewis, with the Newport News registrar’s office.

Perhaps this election is predicted to spur higher voter turnout in part because it includes over 30 competitive races. Further, redistricting maps gave an advantage to some House Democrats, who hope to wrest back the slim majority Republicans hold — in both chambers. As of Sept. 30, Virginia had 5,612,769 registered voters. In the 2015 election, nearly 5.2 million residents registered to vote and a little over 1.5 million, or 29%, actually voted.

Erin Burke Brown, the voter registration and turnout chair for VCU Votes, which promotes voter engagement at Virginia Commonwealth University, said it remains to be seen whether young voters will show up to the polls.

” It depends on whether young people are fired up to want things to change and have their voices heard,” Brown said.”

The last day to register to vote is Oct. 15. Applications for absentee ballots can be found online or by visiting the local registrar’s office. The

Sign up for our free newsletter

Enter your email address to join our weekly newsletter.

You will receive a confirmation email for your subscription. Please check your inbox and spam folder to complete the confirmation process.
Some fields are missing or incorrect!
Lists
Previous Post

Drone delivery launches in Southwest Virginia

Next Post

Pelosi Drug Bill

Next Post

Pelosi Drug Bill

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Sign up now to get weekly top stories, eEdition notifications, deals and more from The Enterprise right to your inbox.
  • Subscribe
  • Contact The Enterprise
  • eEnterprise
  • My Account

  • Login
Forgot Password?
Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.
body::-webkit-scrollbar { width: 7px; } body::-webkit-scrollbar-track { border-radius: 10px; background: #f0f0f0; } body::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb { border-radius: 50px; background: #dfdbdb }
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Local
    • Sports
    • Business
    • Education
    • Family
    • Community Calendar
    • Neighborhood News
    • State News
    • National News
  • Obituaries
  • Spiritual
    • Southern Baptist
    • Parabola
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia
  • eEnterprise
  • Legals
  • Contact
  • Account
  • Login
  • FAQ