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By Mackala Krichbaum, KrichbaumM@Findlay.edu
When moving away to college, students experience many first, which includes voting. However, the University of Findlay’s Pulse Media club is combatting any uncertainty about voting by hosting a mock election on campus.
To prepare for this event the Pulse Media Club has been hard at work preparing for this event.
“[Planning] Basically consists of trying to come up with a plan on how we’re going to have people vote; how we’re going to make sure that everyone can vote once and it’s a secure process; and what the setup is going to be like,” Pulse Media Club Vice President Grant Goodfellow said.
The event, which takes place on Oct. 29, will supply free hoodies, stickers, and desserts for participants.
“We are preparing by getting all of our supplies together,” Pulse Media Club Secretary Richard Mast said. “We’ve got hoodies to give out. We’ve got food that we are giving out at the event. We just ordered stickers to give out. We talk a lot to Professor Rogan and figure out how they have done it before and see how we’re going to do it this year, you know, take it into a new direction, while also trying to stay consistent.”
The UF community will place their mock vote by using a QR code linked to their UF email. Polling locations will be at the AMU and CBSL from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“The reason we are doing that is so that people can show their ID,” Goodfellow said. “We can confirm that people are actually university students.”
Guest speakers at this event include UF President Dr. Katherine Fell in the CBSL at 9 a.m. and Columbus News Anchor Colleen Marshall at 12 p.m.
“We’re trying to make it as realistic as possible to show that the results do matter,” Goodfellow said. “Sometimes, if it’s on a national scale, we kind of lose sight of our votes mattering. So, if we have it on campus and we show the results for the campus, which we will host the winner, it will make people realize, like, ‘Oh, I have an actual say in this.’”
This event highlights the importance of voting to make a difference in the country.
“It’s important to stay aware and know what’s going on, so this is kind of a way to push students and faculty to continue to do that,” Mast said. “We’re just hoping that they can see that it made a difference, made an impact in whoever wins.”
The results from the mock election will be posted throughout campus, along with a news story on Pulse.Findlay.edu. The UF community can keep up with the event through the Pulse Media Club’s social media accounts on TikTok and Instagram.
“We’re going to start a countdown,” Goodfellow said. “We are going to post graphics, actually on TV’s there in the CBSL live, that show the candidate positions on various topics and we’re also going to be live streaming during the event and have real-time updates.”
