Kathleen Kiester said has been the Precinct 1 chairperson for over five years. She said voter turnout at Brody Square, the precinct's polling location, remained "very steady" throughout the day.

According to Kiester, 418 people had voted in Precinct 1 as of about 4 p.m.

"This is quite a bit more turnout than usual," Kiester said. "A lot of elections, we have 26 voters, or 13 voters, or two voters. So, for a midterm election, this is just incredible."

Thasin Sardar, a resident of East Lansing who is running for the East Lansing School Board, waited outside Brody Square in the rain to help "engage the voters" by educating them on the candidates.

"Not many people pay attention to the school board elections, particularly students who are out from of district or newly registered in East Lansing," Sardar said. 

He said he wants to educate students on the importance of the school board.

"It's my passion to serve the community," he said. "I chose to run for the school board so that I can serve in a more formal capacity. With one son having graduated from the high school and another in the tenth grade now, I feel this is my best way to give back to the community."

According to election officials in IM Sports East, 368 people had voted in Precinct 14 and 553 people had voted in Precinct 13 as of around 4:40 p.m.

As of 11 a.m., 85 people had voted in Precinct 14 and 147 people had voted in Precinct 13. 

Sarah Beck, junior special education major, waited in line in IM Sports West to vote in Precinct 15 this afternoon. She said she wasn't originally going to vote in the midterms, but changed her mind after deciding it was her "civic duty."

"It's so important because, if everybody thinks their vote doesn't count, then nobody goes to vote," she said. "We, as a generation, should go out and vote."

Beck said she has seen more of a push for students to vote on campus rather than actual resources and information about what is on the ballot.

"I feel like political ads keep popping up online is where I've seen more stuff," she said.

As of around 3:40 p.m., 617 people had voted in Precinct 15. 

In the MSU Union, Precinct 12 Chairperson Linda Todd Brown said 342 people had voted as of 3:15 p.m. 

She said turnout has been steady all day.

New "MSU Voter Van" has goal of transporting students to polls

The MSU Voter Vans are a new initiative on campus and are a part of the MSU Vote Committee, a non-partisan voter effort on campus to encourage voter participation and registration.

“The vans are a part of an effort to pick students up, take them to the polls, we have all sorts of information about what’s on the ballot, sample ballots, who they can vote for and what the issues are,” Dillon Frechen, a graduate assistant for community relations and a member of the MSU Vote Committee, said. “And then we can give them a ride back to where they need to go after they vote if they so choose. So that’s what we’re out here doing all day from 1:30 to 7:30.” 

Frechen said the Voter Van is also a part of the MSU Voter Challenge. 

“This is just an effort to benchmark ourselves with the rest of the Big 10 to compete within the Big 10, and it’s just an effort to get students out to vote," he said. "A lot of students don’t really know how to fill out an absentee ballot, or change their registration.” 

Frechen said there are five vans driving around campus this election day. Each van has a driver and two navigators, and they use a bullhorn to get students' attentions. 

Authrene Ashton, a second-year graduate student at MSU, is a volunteer driver with the Voter Van.

She said it's important for young students to vote.

“It’s really easy to have a hopeless mindset right now, especially where a lot of things are at for students and depending on your various identities, but it’s important to not get stuck in that hopeless mindset and voting is something you can do to really let your voice be heard.” 

Tammye Coles, associate director in the Department of Student Life, is also a volunteer with the MSU Voter Van.

She also thinks it's very important for students to vote in this election.

I grew up in the 60s, so for me it’s very personal. There were times when people that look like me, or have the same gender as me, were not able to vote," Coles said. "I just think it’s very important to impart that legacy to the next generation of voters. It reaches far beyond your civic duty, it’s your opportunity to have your voice heard. And your opportunity to vote allows your voice to be heard, whatever that voice is, and I just think that’s very very important.” 

The MSU Vote Committee has registered students at the Academic Orientation Program, or AOP, has registered students to vote during football games, has made several promotional videos and more, Frechen said. 

Frechen said the MSU Voting Committee hopes to continue the MSU Voter Van in the future.