History Department Encourages Students to Vote

Southern University’s history department is hosting a citizen conference encouraging voter awareness among high school and college students.
The goal of the conference is to increase the number of student voters in the fall gubernatorial primary.
Last October, 365 out of 8,957 students voted in the U.S. senatorial primary election. This year Veronica Freeman, a professor of American history, is hoping for a better voting turnout.
“A lot of students don’t know about their civic duties,” said Freeman. “If you don’t vote you don’t have the right to complain about there not being enough jobs in Louisiana, low salaries, health care and education.”
Of the twelve candidates running for governor, State Treasurer John Kennedy will be in attendance. Richard Ieyoub and Buddy Leach are sending campaign managers to speak on their behalf.
William Arp, professor of history hopes that if students hear from candidates they would take the voting process more seriously.
“We elect people without vision based on mere popularity and now it’s hurting us,” said Arp.
Republican candidates for governor are former governor Dave Treen, former legislative auditor Dan Kyle, State Senator Ken Hollis, Senate President John Hainkel, State Representative Hunt Dower, Public Service Commission Chairman Jay Blossman, and former state and health official Bobby Jindal.
Democratic candidates include former U.S. Representative Bobby Leach, Attorney General Richard Ieyoub, former senate president Randy Ewing, and Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Blanco.
In a poll conducted by Southern Media and Opinion Research of Baton Rouge, 39.5 percent of 700 voters surveyed in the Baton Rouge area admitted they were uncertain whom to vote for.
“Students don’t vote because they don’t think there opinion counts and they think it’s just a waste of time. I don’t vote because I am not from here,” said Karen Edwards, a senior marketing major from Orlando, Fla.
The citizens conference will be held April 7 in the Smith-Brown Memorial Union Cotillion Ballroom at Southern University in the Union Cotillion Ballroom from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.