Editor’s Note
The United States presidential general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. Ohio voters will have a chance to vote for the next President of the United States, as well as a number of other races. The Review has published a Voter Guide in the Oct. 11 issue as a non-comprehensive introduction to Lorain County down-ballot races to help educate voters about their choices this election. The League of Women Voters of Lorain County has also published a guide for this purpose, which can be found in print at many Oberlin establishments.
To vote, a person must carry either an Ohio driver’s license or photo ID issued by the Ohio BMV, a military ID, or a U.S. passport or passport card and be registered to vote in the state. Voters can find their polling location on the Lorain County Board of Elections website. Students without any of these forms of identification must vote by mail. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 4 or delivered in person to the county board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on election day. Voters can also vote early in person at the Lorain County Board of Elections.
In the leadup to the Nov. 5 election day for the United States presidential general election, campus groups have been organizing events and activities to educate voters about the choices that they have this election.
According to College fourth-year and Democracy Fellow Natalie Dufour, OC Votes has registered around 1,200 people, which is slightly higher than the number that the organization registered for the 2020 election. Since the passage of the voter registration deadline, OC Votes has switched its efforts to educating voters, according to OC Votes Chair and Director of Student Leadership & Civic Engagement Jess Sonney.
The organization has set up a table in Mary Church Terrell Main Library from Wednesday through Friday and will be there again Monday, Nov. 4, to answer questions about the election. On Election Day itself, OC Votes will have a voter education table from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. to assist students who are planning to vote.
OC Votes has organized ObieExpress rides to the Lorain County Board of Elections for students looking to vote early. Sonney wrote in an email to the Review that the first trip, on Tuesday, had a full bus, and a second trip will take place Sunday, Nov. 3. To encourage students to vote, the first trip was preceded by a joint OC Votes and League of Women Voters Vote Early Day Party. Students at the event were able to learn about early voting and could get help filling out an absentee ballot.
The Democracy Fellows, which is an OC Votes initiative where students engage with the Oberlin population to educate people about elections, voting, and listening to public opinion, also organized a Ballot Trivia event in The ’Sco on Wednesday. According to Sonney, the event aimed to educate voters while also making the election season fun and engaging.
Beyond OC Votes, other organizations and offices have been organizing events around the election.
On Monday, Cleveland broadcaster Ideastream held a public panel in Dye Lecture Hall to discuss the implications of Issue 1, which is an initiative intended to prevent gerrymandering in the state of Ohio.
The Oberlin Initiative in Electoral Politics organized a faculty panel discussing the key issues at stake in the upcoming election. During the panel, faculty discussed the impact of the election on international politics, the economic system of the U.S., the way that Congressional elections will shape the next administration, the southern border’s impact on the election, the changes in Latinx Americans’ support for border policies, and the efforts of campaigns to appeal to voters with broad overarching values over specific policies.
The Oberlin College Democrats organized a meet and greet with Oberlin’s Democratic Lorain County Commissioner Candidates on Wednesday. According to Jack Page, the founder of the Oberlin College Democrats, the turnout at the event was not as high as hoped, but he maintained that turnout at other events, including the early voting party, exceeded expectations.
Students involved with the Sunrise Movement have also been organizing around the election.
According to College second-year and Sunrise Oberlin member Max Julius, students attended a postcard event on Oct. 6 to send 600 postcards to voters in swing states. Sunrise Oberlin has also led canvassing efforts among students to support the reelection of Senator Sherrod Brown and other Democrats in Ohio. The organization will also be organizing a phone-banking event on Nov. 4 in Hallock Auditorium to encourage young, undecided voters in swing states to vote.
Multiple events will be held in the aftermath of the election to discuss the events surrounding it and to help students manage the stress that will accompany the following few days.
On Nov. 6, the Oberlin Initiative in Electoral Politics is organizing a panel to discuss the immediate impact of the election and analyze the results. Robert S. Danforth Professor of Politics Eve Sandberg, Associate Professor of Financial Economics M. Udara Peiris, Assistant Professor of Politics Ali Masood, and Assistant Professor of Politics and Comparative American Studies Jenny Garcia will be the panelists.
The Dean of Students Office is also organizing an Election Exhale Community Gathering Space in the Wilder Hall main space on Wednesday, Nov. 6. It will be open to all students and employees, regardless of political affiliation.
Describing the impact of the efforts of OC Dems and other groups, Page wrote to the Review that he hopes they have impacted people positively.
“For me, if one person knows more about the candidates then they would have otherwise, or wouldn’t been registered to vote without our efforts then it’s all worth it!” he wrote.
