After weeks of flagging down students in dorms and on sidewalks, a coalition of Oregon non-profits said Monday it's registered 18,000 college students to vote.
That was the goal, and it's one day before the voter registration deadline. A bigger goal of 28,000 young people is in sight, as well.
The effort is geared toward getting Oregonians who often ignore politics to pay attention. Rob Manning has more on the impact young voters could have on next month's election.
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Patricia Atwater: "Have you registered to vote yet?"
Man: "Oh, I did."
Patricia Atwater: "Oh great, thanks."
Portland State senior, Patricia Atwater, has a lot of quick conversations like that lately. She's trying to register students to vote, from behind a table on the PSU park blocks.
Patricia Atwater: "I use so many superlatives doing this. Get so sick of saying 'great' and 'awesome.' (laugh) Have you registered to vote yet? Great."
The persistence of volunteers like Atwater appears to have paid off with nearly 30,000 more students and young people registered to vote.
They may register for any number of reasons. Take freshman, Ursula Encell.
Ursula Encell: "I don't really like our president right now. I don't agree with a lot of the stuff that's going on and I don't really know that much about it, but I figured I might as well just be a part of it, right?"
Encell is one of many students focused on national issues, according to Ben Unger.
He's the national field director for student registration with the Public Interest Research Group, or PIRG.
Ben Unger: "Young people tend to get so much of their news from the national setting, they get it from the web, or they get it from 'The Daily Show', they get it from those sources that are more national in scope. So when there's a national story about the elections, it does drive interest, among young voters, especially."
There may be a persistent buzz this year, but nothing like two years ago, says Patrick Beisell with PSU's student government.
Patrick Beisell: "I mean, in '04, you could ask somebody to do anything in terms of registering and volunteering, and they would do it. And just in '06, it's a little more difficult."
Of course, two years ago was a presidential year. This time, neither of the U.S. Senators from Oregon is running. Among the House delegation, Democratic incumbent Darlene Hooley may have a tight race with Republican challenger, Mike Erickson, but that's about it.
OSPIRG rep, Ben Unger counters that with the governor's race, ballot initiatives, and local races, there's a lot for reason for students to register, and then to vote.
Ben Unger: "The other part of the equation, though, is getting the local candidates, the gubernatorial candidates, the legislative candidates, coming to campuses and looking at students as a constituency that could turn out for one or the other candidate. For the most part, students are still up for grabs, when it comes to how they're going to vote for candidates and on ballot measures."
Unger may be hinting at a chicken-and-egg kind of problem.
He says students are more likely to vote if candidates come to campus. But candidates only have so much time, and if they look at the 2004 turnout figures, they'll see smaller numbers in some student-heavy precincts.
Patrick Beisell at Portland State, says his group will soon focus on turnout.
Patrick Beisell: "We definitely hit that, because, obviously, you register someone to vote, but if they don't turn out to vote, you've only done a quarter to half the work you need to. It's definitely important for us."
So if students do turn out -- how will they vote?
In districts near the state's largest universities, Democrats far outnumber Republicans. Voting patterns in 2004 reflected that majority.
OPB's political analyst Bill Lunch says that between no-shows and the percentage that votes Republican, the student vote will help Democrats -- a little.
Bill Lunch: "It looks to me like there may be an advantage of four thousand, maybe five thousand votes for the Democrats out of all this. So, it'll be helpful for the Democrats, but not a game-breaker."
All the groups involved in the Student Vote Coalition are non-partisan. That includes the "Building Votes" program, even though it stems from the Oregon Bus Project, which leans Democratic.
Building Votes director, Anna Galland, says her program is part of a national effort that has conservative partners, in other parts of the country.
Anna Galland: "They are also supporting a group called 'Redeem The Vote' which is reaching a whole 'nother segment of young people. Again, I think the most important thing is that all young people of all ideological stripes are involved, otherwise, young people are the canaries in the democratic coal mine - small 'd' democratic - and if they aren't engaged, our whole democracy is at risk, more generally."
Patricia Atwater: "Have you registered to vote yet? Awesome."
Back at Portland State, Patricia Atwater is noticing a slower flow of students. She snags one passer-by -- junior, Michael Knapp.
Patricia Atwater: "So, you're good to go, you should get your ballot in the mail around the 20th of this month."
Michael Knapp: "My stats teacher said I'd get extra credit if I did this, too, that's why I checked."
Patricia Atwater: "That's so great!"
Michael Knapp: "Yeah, so is there anything I can take?"
Patricia Atwater: "I can write a note for you."
Knapp says the extra credit wasn't the only reason he stopped by Atwater's table. He points to ballot initiatives, particularly, that he's heard about on the radio.
