This is a guest post by Natalie Schonfeld, Ph.D., Coastline College’s Dean of Students.
Election Day, November 6, 2018, is fast approaching. Coastline wants to encourage you to exercise your right and vote this coming Tuesday.
NSLVE participation
Coastline is a participant in the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, an initiative of the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education, which has as its mission to shift college and university priorities and culture to advance political learning, agency, and equity. As a result of Coastline’s participation, we get information about our student registration and voting rates. In 2016, about 46% of Coastline students registered to vote. This is about 30% lower than the average registration rate among colleges’ participating in the NSLVE (National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement).
Coastline ranks higher than other NSLVE colleges
Based on our NSLVE results, 72.4% of all registered students at Coastline voted In 2016. This is a fantastic result! This is about 8% higher than the voting rate of registered students. As you may know, Coastline organized a number of voter registration drives earlier this year. If you do not vote, your voice cannot be heard. For that reason, we strive to have ALL eligible Coastline students registered to vote and at the voting booth on Tuesday, November 6th (and at every election). Every election is important-as a college, we encourage you to take the time this Tuesday and get to your polling place and VOTE.
California Voter Registration Information
If you’re thinking the ballot is long and you don’t know enough about the candidates and propositions on the ballot to vote, know that there are tools to help you learn about the issues and candidates. As you may remember, Coastline invited the OC League of Women Voters earlier this month to do a workshop at the Newport Beach campus about the upcoming midterm election, highlighting a few of the propositions on Tuesday’s ballot. Stay informed about the propositions through CA Official Voter Information Guide.
If you have not yet registered to vote, you may consider some of the following:
- Register to vote up until Tuesday, November 6th through the CA Online Voter Registration (See website/deadline specifications)
- You have the opportunity to “conditionally” register to vote and vote provisionally at your local county elections office. Contact your local county elections official for more information or visit Conditional Voter Registration.
Voter Registration Information – ALL STATES
If you live in another state, please see the USAgov election office website to find your corresponding local office.
Additional resources:
- Find more information about registering, checking or changing in your state through USAgov
- The official California Voting Guide
- Not sure where you can go to vote as a California resident? Find your polling place online.
Let your voice be heard on November 6th!