Sixteen students and 20 radio-television students recently experienced the election rite of passage through a partnership with the Orlando Sentinel on Nov. 3.

Orlando’s flagship newspaper has been operating without a newsroom since August and with a significantly reduced staff, genuinely in need of more reporters to properly cover this massive story. NSCM students came to the rescue and fanned out across Central Florida — filing dispatches at polling sites and election offices, monitoring social media, capturing photos and videos, and contributing to on-air reporting and broadcasts throughout the night.

“�鶹ԭ��’s student journalists played a critical role in the Orlando Sentinel’s 2020 Election Day coverage.” –Julie Anderson ’84 ’89MA, editor-in-chief for the ‘Orlando Sentinel’

“�鶹ԭ��’s student journalists played a critical role in the Orlando Sentinel’s 2020 Election Day coverage,” says Julie Anderson ’84 ’89MA, Orlando Sentinel’s editor-in-chief. “T���ir reporting from precincts all over our region about voters’ perspectives gave flavor to the results that were coming in on Election Day. They also applied their social media and broadcasting skills to help us inform readers about the results coming in.

In turn, students gained hands-on experience working with a major news organization; garnered feedback from Sentinel editors; earned the chance to land future internships and jobs; shared bylines, shirttail credits and broadcast credits; and — best of all — had the unique thrill and adrenaline rush of writing on deadline while covering one of the biggest stories of the year.

“I learned so much from simply being out on the field and watching how an election is covered. I think this type of learning skyrockets student journalists’ abilities and education,” says Natalia Jaramillo, a journalism major who reported from the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office.

Some of the highlights for journalism majors include:

• Edward Segarra wrote a breaking news story about the Osceola Supervisor of Election Office’s Internet outage that resulted from a severed fiber cable. He and Jessica Siles reported on voters throughout Osceola County, including a long-time Democrat who voted for Trump because the rest of the family was for Biden.
• Fritz Farrow wrote a story about a former postal worker who voted in person because he didn’t trust the U.S. Postal Service.
• Two reporters, Hector Garcia de Leon and Kai Rodriquez, contributed stories to the Sentinel‘s Hispanic publication, El Sentinel, and received shared bylines.
• Daniela Vivas Labrador and Jenna Erhlich covered Seminole County, including a story about two women, 87 and 70, who have voted in every election since they were 18.

“T��� Orlando Sentinel staff did a wonderful job at preparing us and making us feel welcome and valued,” says Monica Sealey, who worked with four other students to cover �鶹ԭ��’s voting precinct. “I really like that they didn’t ‘baby’ us. Instead, they gave us the guidelines, set us free and trusted us to produce great content.”

“T��� ‘Orlando Sentinel’ staff did a wonderful job at preparing us and making us feel welcome and valued.” – Monica Sealey, �鶹ԭ�� student

As the night went on, students got better at recognizing a story, finding a different angle, interviewing voters, remembering to get the essential details and cutting down on sloppy copy. We witnessed them excel at something they had never done before and become more confident as the night went on.

“I remember in my first semester at �鶹ԭ��, I was in the Electronic News Gathering class with [R/TV Program Coordinator and Associate] Professor Tim Brown and something he told me that I have held close to me and tried to apply each and every day in my journalism career was, ‘You grow most where you’re uncomfortable,’ ” says Matison Little, who covered voting in Lake County with another student.

Behind the scenes, the 20 radio television students earned praise from faculty and Sentinel editors for their steady and calm composure during live broadcasts.

“T���y rose to the challenge. They took it seriously. They wanted to be part of it. They wanted a piece of it,” Senior Instructor Rick Brunson says. “T���y treated it like it was show time.”

Together, students and faculty may have built the foundation for more cooperative efforts between the Orlando Sentinel and the �鶹ԭ�� journalism program.

“It was a great experience for the Sentinel, and a partnership we hope to extend,” Anderson says.

Jewett is an internationally recognized political scientist and co-author of the book Politics in Florida. Jewett also served as a congressional aide for a now-retired congressman and as president of the Florida Political Science Association. This semester, he is teaching State Government and Public Policy, Florida Politics, and Scope and Methods of Political Science. Jewett joined �鶹ԭ�� in 1995 and earned his doctorate in political science from Florida State University in 1997.

What factors have made this presidential election unique?
AJ: Two factors make this election unique: One is Donald Trump and the other is coronavirus. We have not had a president like President Trump in my lifetime. Presidential role theory suggests that presidents act and behave in certain ways. Regardless of age and party, most presidents conform to that. President Trump has done things differently compared to traditional presidents of either party.

Clearly beyond the candidates and personalities, the pandemic is something the country hasn’t been through in a century. It has affected the way Trump and Joe Biden campaign. It has affected the way people vote. We’ve seen a lot more people request mail-in ballots. And each candidates’ response to the pandemic may certainly be one of the bigger factors on choosing which candidate they vote for.

In the last six presidential elections, [Florida has] voted three times for Republican, three times for Democrat and all six times for the winner.

Why is Florida such an important state in presidential elections?
AJ: Empirically, Florida has been the most important swing state over the last 24 years. In the last six presidential elections, we voted three times for Republican, three times for Democrat and all six times for the winner. The margin of victory for the winner has been the smallest of any of the 50 states. On average, the president who won Florida won by 2.6 percent over those six elections. Ohio is the only other state that has voted for the winner six times in a row and their margin of victory for winners has been 4.6 percent. We have 29 electoral votes, which is the most of any of the historical swing states. That makes Florida such an important and prime target, and the candidates are aware of that.

How does the Electoral College process work, and why do we have it?
AJ: We have it because it’s the way the framers of the Constitution set it up more than 200 years ago. The framers didn’t trust direct democracy — they didn’t want the masses to necessarily have the final say on who would be president because they knew based on history that in democracies, a lot of times the masses didn’t make considered choices. They also really wanted to protect the role of the states in choosing the president. Each state wanted to have some influence, and particularly the smaller states didn’t want the larger states to have all the say politically. So they came up with the Electoral College.

Each state gets electoral votes based on their membership in Congress. Even the smallest states get at least three electoral votes (one for each senator, and at least one for a representative). Larger states have more members of the House of Representatives so they get more electoral votes. So instead of a national popularity contest, we have a state-by-state race. It is a contest to win states and electoral votes of those states. As a candidate, you have to win a majority of electoral votes (270) to become president. There are 435 members in the House and 100 members in the Senate – that’s 535, plus by constitutional amendment we give three electoral votes to Washington, D.C. As a president, you try to win enough states so that you can win at least 270 electoral votes.

In 48 of the 50 states, it’s a winner-take-all race. In other words, if you win the state of Florida by even just one popular vote, you win all 29 electoral votes. The two exceptions to winner-take-all are Maine and Nebraska. They have a congressional apportionment system. The statewide winner wins two electoral votes for the two U.S. senators and then the winner of each district will win one electoral vote. In 2016, Trump lost Maine statewide but he won one of the congressional districts, so he won one electoral vote from Maine.

What are the pros and cons of the Electoral College?
AJ: The biggest criticism is occasionally the winner of the national popular vote doesn’t become president. We’ve had that happen twice in the last 20 years – in 2000 when George W. Bush beat Al Gore, and four years ago when Hillary Clinton won by more than 2 million votes but lost in the Electoral College. People argue, “This is democracy? How can the winner of the popular vote not win the presidency?”

But in terms of defending the Electoral College, it keeps a vibrant and important role for the states and particularly protects the role of small states — they have a larger percentage of power in the Electoral College system than they would have in just a national popular vote. When the original states agreed to form the country, that was part of the deal.

Is there a possibility of reforming the way elections are run?
AJ: There have been a lot of critics of the Electoral College. Those critics have usually been Democrats and more progressive because from their perspective, they’ve come up on the short end of the stick twice in the last 20 years. It’s a difficult thing to change because it’s in the Constitution. To change the Electoral College means you’d have to have a constitutional amendment. We’ve only had 27 amendments in more than 200 years, and 10 of them happened in the first two years right after the Constitution. So it’s not impossible, but it’s certainly a difficult road and a hard process to change.

Do you think we’ll know the winner of the presidential race on election night?
AJ: It depends on how close the race is, and this year might take a lot longer to tabulate the results because of all the mail-in ballots. Florida is a little bit better off compared to a number of other states because we’ve been doing mail-in ballots for a long time, and we have state laws that say the supervisor of elections can start tabulating those mail ballots before the election. But a lot of states do not have that rule. Some of them have a rule that you have to wait until election night. Historically that hasn’t been a problem for those states because they haven’t had huge numbers of mail-in votes but this year they probably will. There are also some states, like California and Oregon, that allow ballots to count as long as they are postmarked by the election. Those states historically vote for the Democratic candidate, so those mail-in ballots may not be a factor for them in projecting a winner for president, but in other more competitive states who have the same rule, it could be a factor if the race is close. So it’s really going to be interesting to see how all of this affects the process.

“If residents of any state should to be voting, it ought to be Florida because we have a history of close elections so every vote matters.”

“If residents of any state should to be voting, it ought to be Florida because we have a history of close elections so every vote matters,” says Stephen Masyada, interim executive director for the . “Voting is our biggest opportunity to make a change and this is a significant election no matter which candidate you support. There really is no reason to not make your voice heard, vote, and play a role in selecting the next president and influencing decisions that can have some pretty significant impacts on the state of Florida.

Ways to Vote and Avoid Ballot Mistakes

1. Make sure you’re registered to vote
   If you’re unsure about your voter registration status, visit . If you aren’t registered to vote, the deadline to do so for the 2020 election has passed, but you should register ASAP to make sure you can participate in future elections.
2. Consider early voting and bring your ID
   From Oct. 19 – Nov. 1 early voting is taking place at select sites throughout Florida. There are 20 early voting sites in Orange County, including one in the Live Oak Center on �鶹ԭ��’s main campus, and eight in Seminole County. Lines on Election Day may be long, so early voting is a great way to avoid them and make sure you actually get to cast your ballot. Whether you’re voting early or on Election Day you must bring a valid photo ID with a signature with you.
3. Request and send mail-in ballots on time or trade it in at an early voting site
   The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is 10 days before Election Day, which is Nov. 3. However, if you want to be sure your ballot is counted, Masyada suggests you mailing it out two weeks before Election Day. You can also drop off mail-in ballots at early voting sites during the early voting period, just be sure to place your ballot in the return envelope with a signature and date, just as you would do if you were mailing it. If you change your mind, you can also bring your mail-in ballot to an early voting site to exchange it and vote in person instead.
4. Make sure your signature matches your government ID
   No matter which method you choose to vote — but especially so for mail-in ballots — it is crucial to make sure your signature matches the one on your government ID, typically your driver’s license. This is one of the most common mistakes that can prevent your vote from being counted and if you’re voting by mail you likely won’t know your vote hasn’t been counted until it’s too late, Masyada says.
5. Use a black pen, completely fill in bubbles and don’t make stray marks
   If you’re voting in person you’ll likely be given an appropriate writing utensil, but if you’re voting by mail be sure to use a black pen because other ink colors or pencil will not be detected by scanners, Masyada says. While you don’t have to complete every question or category on the ballot, you must completely fill in ovals for the ones you want to fill out. And stray marks should be avoided to prevent any issues with counting your vote.
6. Don’t share your ballot on social media
   While you may feel inclined to share your vote on social media, don’t take a selfie with your ballot in a polling place and post it online because it’s illegal and you may face consequences. Instead, you can post pictures with your “I Voted” sticker.
7. Track your mail-in ballot
   If you’re mailing in your ballot, you can track the status of it through the Division of Elections’  or through your county’s 

Understanding the Six Amendments on Florida’s Ballot This Year

There’s a lot more on the ballot than just presidential candidates, so be sure to do your research on other political and government officials, like your local congressional representatives, senator and sheriff, that are up for election. Sites like , which is a nonpartisan tool provided by the Women’s League of Voters, provide personalized voting information based on where you live.

There are also six amendments on Florida’s ballot this year and to help you make your best decision, here are some summaries of each one.

Amendment 1
The state Constitution currently states “every citizen of the United States who is at least eighteen years of age and who is a permanent resident of the state, if registered as provided by law, shall be an elector of the county where registered.”

Amendment 1 would change from the word “every” to “only”.

Amendment 2
The current minimum wage in Florida is $8.56 an hour to $10 in September 2021 and then the wage would increase it by $1 per year after that until it reaches $15 an hour in 2026. In 2027, the minimum wage would revert back to increasing annually by the rate of inflation, which is already in the state constitution.

Amendment 3
Currently in Florida, registered Republicans vote in their primary and registered Democrats vote in theirs, while registered voters with no political party affiliation can’t vote in either.

“Speaking civics wise, Amendment 3 is one people should really pay attention to because it essentially eliminates closed primaries in the state,” Masyada says. “It would open the primaries up and potentially two Republicans or two Democrats can get the nominations [in the general elections].”

Amendment 4
Amendment 4 is another one that Masyada says is especially important from a civics perspective.

“Amendment 4 would change the constitutional amendment process in the state significantly,” Masyada says. “Right now, in order for an amendment to pass it has to reach a 60 percent approval from all voters in the state during one election. This amendment means future amendments would have to pass with 60 percent through two elections – which essentially is double the effort.”

Amendment 5
If passed, Amendment 5 would extend the period for which people can transfer “Save Our Home” benefits from two years to three.

Amendment 6
This amendment would allow a deceased veteran’s homestead property tax discount to transfer over to their surviving spouse. If the spouse sells the property and moves into a new home, they would be eligible for a discount that does not exceed the previous one. However, if they remarry, they would no longer be eligible.

The early voting site at the Live Oak Event Center will remain open for two weeks, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day through Sunday, Nov. 1. Anyone who is registered to vote in Orange County — including students, faculty and staff at �鶹ԭ��, as well as the general public — can take advantage of this convenient early voting site.

Parking is available near the Live Oak Event Center in Garage B, across Gemini Boulevard from the Recreation and Wellness Center. Marked parking for voters will be on the first floor of the north side of the garage.

�鶹ԭ�� and Orange County elections officials have taken steps to promote safety at the early voting site. Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles said physical distancing will be enforced, and facial coverings must be worn by both voters and poll workers. Hand sanitizer and extra masks will be available for voters. Plexiglas barriers will separate voters and election workers.

When visiting the early voting site, voters should bring photo and signature identification, such as a Florida driver’s license.

When visiting the early voting site, voters should bring photo and signature identification, such as a Florida driver’s license. Visit the for a list of acceptable forms of ID.

Students who live on campus also should know the physical address of their �鶹ԭ�� residence hall, which may be different than their mailing address. If you don’t know the physical address, poll workers will be on hand to help.

You may instead choose to vote by mail. To request a vote-by-mail ballot, visit at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24. Your completed vote-by-mail ballot must be received no later than 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3. The U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing your ballot at least a week before Election Day to make sure it is counted. You can also return your completed vote-by-mail ballot at secure drop boxes at the Supervisor of Elections Office or any early voting site, including the one at �鶹ԭ��.

Those who live in other counties should check with their local elections office to find the closest early voting site.

�鶹ԭ�� was recognized last year as a Voter Friendly Campus for initiatives to register and encourage students to vote. Washington Monthly also ranked the university as one of the 58 best in the nation for student voting.

To check your voting registration status, download a sample ballot or find other information, visit the .

The census is a count of every person living in the nation’s 50 states, District of Columbia and five U.S. territories.

As of March 21, 16.7 percent of households across the nation have responded to the 2020 census survey, so it’s crucial that you respond if you have not already.

Why Your Response Matters

Even during the coronavirus pandemic, it is important to prioritize completing the census survey.

“I know we all have a great deal going on, but at some point life will resume and decisions will be made based on census data that was collected even during this time of crisis,” says Stephen Masyada, interim executive director at �鶹ԭ��’s Lou Frey Institute. “It’s important these decisions are made based on accurate information, so we need to make sure that we get those census forms completed.”

“At some point life will resume and decisions will be made based on census data that was collected even during this time of crisis,” says Stephen Masyada, interim executive director at �鶹ԭ��’s Lou Frey Institute.

As a constitutional requirement, the U.S. Census Bureau has conducted a population count every 10 years since 1790 to determine how many seats each state gets in the House of Representatives. In 2010, census data indicated 18.8 million people resided in Florida, which was a 2.8 million population increase from the previous census.

“In 2010, our growth here in the state of Florida caused us to gain two seats in the House and that’s really important because that is how we affect legislation,” says Channa Lloyd, a U.S. Census partnership specialist.

This year, the City of Orlando projects that Florida may gain one more seat. Regardless, census responses will be used to redistrict each state in the nation. There are 435 congressional districts in the United States, with one member in the House elected from each to represent their interests. Each district must represent the same number of people, so while smaller-population states such as Alaska have one representative, larger states have more, such as Florida with 27. This will change after the 2020 census.

“It’s so very important people complete this information because it really does dictate the direction of the country politically, economically and socially in many ways,” Masyada says. “If you don’t respond there are significant consequences. It impacts our ability to influence our leaders, get legislation we think is important and improve our communities. If we don’t take part in the census, our voice on issues simply cannot be as loud and as strong.”

The U.S. government also uses the census results to determine how to split up trillions of dollars in federal funds over the next decade. These funds support 144 federal programs including, the Pell Grant, emergency response, medical aid, housing assistance and school lunch.

In 2015, George Washington University conducted a study that found each person who did not complete the 2010 census in Florida cost the state $1,455 in federal funding.

Florida was allocated federal funding of $4 trillion — $400 billion each year — in the decade following the 2010 census. The Sunshine State is estimated to potentially receive $7 trillion, or $675 billion each year, for the next decade after the 2020 census.

What Will be Collected and What Campus Residents Should Know

Since its beginning the main question of the census survey has been, “How many people live in your household as of April 1?”, also known as Census Day. The same is true for the 2020 census, but due to necessary precautions and responses to the Coronavirus outbreak some adjustments have been made to this question.

�鶹ԭ�� has moved to remote instruction through the spring and summer A, C and D semesters to reduce the to minimize health and safety risks from COVID-19 to the �鶹ԭ�� community. During this time, the university has requested students return to their permanent residences, unless they are unable to do so due to extenuating circumstances.

The university will complete the census 2020 count for students who typically live on campus, even if they are not living in �鶹ԭ�� Housing on April 1.

The university will complete the census 2020 count for students who typically live on campus, even if they are not living in �鶹ԭ�� Housing on April 1. An administrator at the university will electronically submit a response for each student who resides on the main, downtown and Rosen campuses. This means students who have been or currently are living in �鶹ԭ�� Housing during the Spring 2020 semester do not need to take action to complete the census survey and their parents should not include them in on their census forms.

The information �鶹ԭ�� will submit is directory information authorized under FERPA guidelines, which typically is not considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed. This information includes name, address, telephone listing, date of birth, and dates of attendance.

The census also asks questions covering basic information, such as the age of the person who owns your home or pays the rent for your apartment and the type of dwelling you reside in. This additional information is used for data purposes, such as gathering statistics on homeowner demographics.

In December, the data collected by the Census Bureau will be shared with other government offices to determine redistricting across the nation. Any information that could identify respondents is secure for 72 years and can never be used in court, regardless of immigration or criminal status, according to law. You will never be asked to share your social security number or pay for a census survey, so be cautious of anyone imitating census takers and asking for confidential information.

What to Do if You Live Off Campus

By March 20 you should have receive a mail notice from the Census Bureau indicating your options for response. Census 2020 marks the first time you can respond to the survey online, but you can also respond by phone or mail.

Parents should not count their college students on their census form if they typically live on campus or at an off-campus residence throughout most of the year.

“T��� online census form is easy to complete, and you can do it from the comfort of your own home. Make it a part of your social distancing objectives: complete the census and make myself count – literally,” Masyada says.

By April 1 you should submit your responses to the survey, with one survey completed per household. When you respond you must tell the Census Bureau where you live on April 1. Parents should not count their college students on their census form if they typically live on campus or at an off-campus residence throughout most of the year.

Eligible voters can cast ballots for the 2020 Presidential Preference Primary from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day in room 206 of the Recreation and Wellness Center through Sunday, March 15.

Parking spaces will be set aside on the first floor of Parking Garage B, located across the street from the Recreation and Wellness Center.

Only those registered to vote in Orange County may cast their ballots at this or other early voting sites in Orange County. Those who live in other Florida counties can check with their county elections office for a list of early voting locations. Florida is a closed-primary state, meaning only voters registered with a particular political party may vote in that party’s primary elections.

All Orange County registered voters who live in cities or towns holding municipal elections on March 17 also can cast their early voting ballots at �鶹ԭ�� for their respective municipal elections. Those municipalities are Apopka, Belle Isle, Eatonville, Maitland, Winter Garden and Winter Park.

For eligible voters residing in the �鶹ԭ�� precinct, Election Day voting for the Presidential Preference Primary will take place on Tuesday, March 17, in the Garden Room of the Live Oak Event Center from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Photo and signature identifications are required for both early and Election Day voting.

Not sure if you’re registered to vote in Florida? You can check your voter registration status online. The deadline to register to vote as well as the deadline to submit a party-registration change for Florida’s 2020 Presidential Preference Primary has passed. You can go online to register or update your voter information for future elections.

The early voting initiative continues a partnership between local election officials and �鶹ԭ��’s student leadership. In 2018, the worked with Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles to establish an early voting site at �鶹ԭ��. It marked the first time that an early voting site had been placed on �鶹ԭ��’s campus. The voting site — open for 14-days within the Live Oak Event Center — helped to drive a dramatic increase in voting statistics at �鶹ԭ��.

Last year, �鶹ԭ�� was recognized as a Voter Friendly Campus for its initiatives to register and encourage students to vote. Washington Monthly ranked the University as one of the best in the nation for student voting, one of only 58 universities to make the list.

The statistics were part of a new study of 51,151 �鶹ԭ�� registered voters and other students at more than 1,000 U.S. universities and colleges, according to the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement conducted by researchers at Tufts University.

Haley G. Winston, assistant director of the �鶹ԭ�� Office of Student Involvement, largely credited the increase to the university’s , which outlines a program to support registrations, voting events, social media campaigns and other outreach.

“We have both passive and active voter registration drives on campus,” Winston says. “We participate in the , Campus Election Engagement Project and the . All of these national outlets give us ways to engage students.”

The campus also hosted a 2018 early voting location in the Live Oak Room on the main campus.

�鶹ԭ�� says it pushes the election process because civic skills – like voting – are life-long skills.

As a result of all the efforts, at the most recent midterm election there were 30,223 �鶹ԭ�� student voters.

The option of early voting helped drive the increase. While in-person election day voting and absentee voting both dipped in 2018, the early voting jumped from 25 percent of the total ballots cast in 2014 to 39.4 percent in 2018.

�鶹ԭ�� says it pushes the election process because civic skills – like voting – are life-long skills.

“If students learn the voting process early they will be life-long active citizens,” Winston says. “We are very big on educating student about using their voice through their vote.”

Voting in presidential election years is typically higher than in midterm years. �鶹ԭ�� had a 61 percent voting rate in the 2016 presidential election and has set a goal of achieving 70 percent student voting in next year’s election.

Already this year, �鶹ԭ�� was recognized as one of the 123 Voter Friendly Campuses by NASPA, and Washington Monthly magazine ranked the university as one of the 80 best in the nation for student voting.

I’m pleased that so many of you voted in Tuesday’s election. In fact, student voters helped set an early-voting record at �鶹ԭ��. And on Election Day, our student-voting location was busy from open to close.

For many of you, Tuesday was the first time you voted. But voting is not the end of the political process…it’s the beginning.

Whether you came to class Wednesday elated or disappointed with the results, continue to make your voice heard. Advocate for issues that are important to you, and work with your elected officials and other local leaders to make our community, state and country better.

I hope this election — and your time at �鶹ԭ�� — shows you the impact that a single voice and vote can have. A lifetime of civic engagement is ahead of you.

Charge On,

�鶹ԭ�� President Dale Whittaker

Her plea — along with her endorsement of two candidates in upcoming Tennessee races for U.S. Senate and House — coincided with more than 166,000 new voter registrations between the time she posted on Oct. 7 and noon on Oct. 9, according to Vote.org. About 42 percent of those registrants were between the ages of 18 and 24.

But are celebrity endorsements really a magic bullet for politicians?

Not necessarily, says Aubrey Jewett, associate professor of Political Science at �鶹ԭ��.

“Studies show that celebrity endorsements most often energize a fan base who were already leaning toward a certain politician. So maybe they go from planning to vote to attending a rally,” Jewett says.

Jewett points to the close primary race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in 2008 as an example. Oprah Winfrey’s endorsement of Obama was estimated to be worth more than a million votes and a huge boost in fundraising.

On a broader scale, celebrity endorsements often serve as a bridge between a demographic and a candidate, explained Terri Fine, professor of Political Science and associate director of the Lou Frey Institute of Politics and Government at �鶹ԭ��. The Institute promotes civic engagement through educational programs, research and policy analysis.

Turnout and registration is often low with younger voters because they don’t frequently see candidates who mirror their age or demographic. Swift’s endorsement serves as a proxy for that lack of a familiar face, Fine says.

“People recognize her, they like her, and that enables her to send a message,” Fine says.

But celebrity endorsements have their drawbacks, too.

“It can actually have a net negative effect,” Jewett explains.

Research shows in some cases voters will come out specifically to vote against someone a celebrity endorsed.

“It can hurt instead of help a candidate,” Jewett says.

The Student Government Association worked with Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles to establish the early voting center where members of the �鶹ԭ�� community and others from outside campus will be able to vote Monday, Oct. 22, through Sunday, Nov. 4. The agreement gives another option for voting before the general election on Nov. 6.

“Engaging in our democracy is critical to becoming an educated, impactful citizen.” – �鶹ԭ�� President Dale Whittaker.

“Engaging in our democracy is critical to becoming an educated, impactful citizen. Removing barriers for our students and staff is the right thing to do,” �鶹ԭ�� President Dale Whittaker says.

Cowles and �鶹ԭ�� announced last month that there would be early voting on campus, and they’ve now picked a location that’s easily accessible and has ample parking.

The new site at the , at Ferrell Commons near Garage B, will be open for 14 days of early voting from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Parking spaces will be set aside and marked with signage in , which is across Gemini Boulevard from the Recreation and Wellness Center.

“Our right to vote is the most powerful tool we have to shape our collective future,” SGA President Josh Boloña says. “T��� Student Government Association seeks to bring awareness and place special emphasis on the importance of voting. The goal of our “Charge Your Vote” campaign is to engage all �鶹ԭ�� students, faculty and staff in the civic and electoral process.”

“Our right to vote is the most powerful tool we have to shape our collective future.” – SGA President Josh Boloña

Only those registered to vote in Orange County may cast their ballots at this or other early voting centers in Orange County. Those who live in other counties can for a list of early voting locations. County elections websites also have information about how you can vote by mail.

Not sure if you’re registered to vote? You can . You can also . To vote in the general election, new voters must register by Oct. 9. Current registered voters in Florida can update their information through Election Day.

Having an early voting site on campus fits in with �鶹ԭ��’s “Charge Your Vote” campaign to boost student registration and voting rates. At the start of the fall semester, SGA leaders enlisted all interested social and political groups on campus to help register students as they moved into residence halls. Hundreds of new voters signed up.

Last month, Washington Monthly magazine recognized �鶹ԭ�� as one of , one of only 58 universities to make the list. The ranking is based in part on �鶹ԭ��’s comprehensive effort to increase voting rates among students. As part of a formal plan to increase civic learning and political engagement, the university has set a goal of achieving a 70 percent student voting rate by 2020.