Empowering First-Time Voters at RWU
By Sarah Price
Voting may seem scary, and for the upcoming election, it is many students’ first time being eligible to vote. Although many RWU students are registered to vote, there is still some hesitation about the election. However, it’s important to remember that voting is a privilege, and exercising your right to vote can make an impact in tremendous ways. In recent years, there have been some changes on campus surrounding the political scene, but there are resources available that can help you stay educated.
When talking with June Speakman, a political science professor here at Roger Williams, she has noticed that the political engagement on campus is very low; she says that “right now [it] is about as low as I’ve seen in many years.”
There are some factors as to why this is. There is longer a College Democrats or College Republicans on campus. Speakman states that these organizations had been on campus since the early 2000s, but last year both groups disbanded. As many are aware, in the past year on other college campuses there were large protests surrounding the war in Israel and Palestine while on our campus, there was low engagement surrounding the conflict; this also goes hand in hand with conflict in the Middle East as well. Overall noise on these issues hasn’t been a large focus on campus.
Professor Speakman acknowledges that it can be difficult to speak on politics but they must be spoken on. She says that it can be tough, but “You should never not talk about politics because it’s so important, […] you gotta try.” It must be stated that with the change in candidates, as Kamala Harris was endorsed by Biden and won the Democratic vote, so there has been a bit more energy surrounding this upcoming election. But as both sides have such varying opinions, it can be difficult in general to speak on anything political. Political topics are difficult, that is not unknown, and although everyone is entitled to their own opinions it is also important to understand both sides of the argument no matter your own beliefs. Speakman mentions that it is difficult to change the opinion of someone who believes one side of the argument but that does not mean you can’t listen.
Now although speaking on the topic of politics is difficult, when speaking with students on campus many are registered to vote for the upcoming election. Although there may not be a multitude of political events on campus, Professor Speakman mentioned that “a lot of students have reported proudly that they had gotten their mail ballots and submitted them.” (Speakman) But for students who have not registered for absentee ballots, it is possible to vote in Bristol for the upcoming presidential election.
Regarding the resources available on campus, I spoke with K.C. Ferrara, the Director of the Feinstein Center for Engaged Learning. When meeting with her, she spoke on the many different services that are available to students when it comes to voting. You may have noticed there are different signs and posters across campus that say “All In” or “All In Democracy Challenge.” This is a national organization that Roger Williams has joined with that promotes voter education and registration. This outlet, allows students on campus to engage with voting, know their rights, and how to approach the topic in general. With the All In Democracy Challenge, the University receives a report during both the Presidential Election as well as the Midterm Election regarding the engagement on campus. In the 2020 Presidential election, Roger Williams had a 64.6% Voting Rate which was a 17.3% increase from the 2016 election. (NSLVE Data)
And with our campus’s numbers increasing, the ability to vote on campus has become even easier this year. For students who have not registered for absentee ballots, it is possible to vote on campus for the upcoming presidential election. Once again, a polling station will be located in the North Campus Residence Hall for those who wish to vote in person on election day, allowing for easy access to resources for voting. Before the off-campus housing Baypoint closed, students who resided there, should they have wished to vote in Rhode Island had to register to vote in Portsmouth. Ferrara spoke on this stating, “So if you lived at Baypoint, you had to vote in Portsmouth, which, if you don’t have a car, how you get into the polls?” This caused difficulties as they would not have been allowed to vote in the North Campus Residence Hall. But now that all students reside in on-campus housing or Almedia, Ferrara said that the topic of voting has been “hyped” as we no longer have students residing in Portsmouth.
It is important to stay informed and not believe everything at first glance. There are different resources available on campus to inform you on your voting rights such as attending Hawk The Vote informative sessions. Recently on October 21st, HALSA, the Hispanic and Latinx Student Association, had an event called Voces del Voto: Empowering Your Voice which spoke on critical issues such as identifying media bias, housing, and immigration. This allowed students to be better educated on some issues that have been mentioned in this upcoming election. If you also have any voting questions you can always go to the Feinstein Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement and speak with K.C. Ferrara herself if you wish for help regarding the upcoming election.
Although there may be low student engagement surrounding voting and politics, it can be seen that many intend to vote. Professor Speakman spoke on how she thinks that voting is our civic duty, you vote where you lay your head. When it comes time for you to vote, remember what is most important to you and consider this when deciding to vote whether that be on a ballot from home or a ballot here in Bristol. Having the freedom to vote is important and “it’s a throwaway moment if you don’t exercise it. […] In other countries, you don’t have that privilege.” (Ferrara) No matter how small the difference you make, it can have long-lasting outcomes.
Related Articles
Related
Student Senate Update 10/6/2025
On Monday, October 6th, the student senate welcomed Joanna Ravello Goods, the university’s Vice President for Equality and the Chief Diversity Officer, to share the progress that she has made in creating a new campaign to replace the longstanding Racism Stops With Me...
Senate Update 9/29: “Just Another Day in Paradise”
During this meeting on September 29, 2025, the senators swore in the new senators and officers for the class of 2029. The new senators include Dino Loaiza, Sophia Bloom, Caeden Morency, Gaby Henriquez. ICC elections include results for the class of 2029 and 2027. The...
Student Sentate Update 9/22
On September 22, 2025, the Student Senate opened its floor to 12 candidates to declare their intentions of running for 2027 and 2029 class officers and for general senators. Each candidate went in front of the senate general assembly to make a campaign speech...