Friday, March 29, 2024

Register Early

Registering 30 days prior to election is not unreasonable

A proposed House Bill to remove the law requiring voters to register 30 days before the election is not an issue ASMSU, university’s undergraduate student government, should support.

If the bill is passed, residents will have until election day to register. However, it is unlikely residents and students alike need 30 days to register to vote.

Voters who are concerned about the issues involved in the election and want to have their voices heard will make the effort to register before the 30-day period. Therefore, being able to register until the day of the election will not be an important factor for informed voters to consider.

Those who are less concerned about the election and have not taken the time to educate themselves on how and where to register will be people who would benefit from a law like this. However, being a responsible voter means registering 30 days before the election.

Waiting until the last day to register would cause long lines and more work for election officials. Those who had taken the time to register before the 30-day period would still be inconvenienced by those who waited to register until the last day.

ASMSU should instead concentrate on making students more aware of the 30-day deadline. It could also be confusing for students to remember the precinct where they should vote as well as what they need to do to register.

ASMSU should realize this and try to increase communication between the student body and election officials by helping students with questions and concerns they may have about voting.

Students also need to be more aware of the voting laws and take the initiative to register instead of procrastinating until the last day.

Many on-campus groups make a point to keep students informed of news involving elections and where students can register and cast their votes. It should be up to students to know when to ask questions so they are registered on time and know where to vote.

There are also more important voting issues ASMSU should concentrate on.

These include the law requiring the address on a resident’s driver’s license and the precinct where they are voting to be the same. This is an issue that has been the focus of controversy between student voters and election officials and deserves to be looked into as well.

If more important voting issues like these are recognized by ASMSU and brought to the attention of MSU students, voters will be better informed of what they need to do to register to vote, rather than have an unnecessary amount of time to procrastinate.

If voters are given no specific amount of time to register to vote, the issue will not be solved. Voters who want to have a voice in the election should keep themselves informed of what they need to do to be involved, rather than counting on being able to register until Election Day.

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