Voting on UW-Parkside Campus Up in 2018

Published: September 23, 2019
By: UW-Parkside Marketing & Communications

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SOMERS – Midterm voting by University of Wisconsin-Parkside students increased more than 18 percent between the 2014 and 2018 elections, according to a report from the Institute for Democracy & Higher Education (IDHE).

In 2014, 53.9 percent of registered UW-Parkside students voted. Participation for registered voters rose to 76.9 percent in 2018. Among all institutions in the study, UW-Parkside students surpassed the participation rate for registered voters by more than 20 percent.

“UW-Parkside students are connected to the community; the majority of them are from southeastern Wisconsin, and the university does an outstanding job creating awareness around the importance of being civically engaged,” said Dr. Peggy James, dean of the UW-Parkside College of Social Sciences and Professional Studies. “I’m not surprised that our rate of participation is strong, and I’m proud to be associated with an institution that values and actively promotes the democratic process.”

The report is part of the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, or NSLVE, conducted by IDHE at the Tufts University Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life. In 2014, the average institutional voting rate for all students at all campuses in the study was 19.7 percent. That number grew to 39.1 percent in 2018. At UW-Parkside in 2018 the institutional voting rate was 51 percent – 30 percent higher than the national average.

“Across all age groups, voter participation at UW-Parkside increased from 2014 to 2018,” said UW-Parkside Chancellor Debbie Ford. “I was especially proud to see a 21 percent increase for the 18 to 21-year-old demographic.”

IDHE is the only national study of college-student voting. It is based on the voting records of more than 10 million students at more than 1,000 colleges and universities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The study provides reports to participating colleges and universities which are able to use the data to support political learning and civic engagement, as well as to identify and address gaps in political and civic participation.

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CONTACT:

John Mielke
Executive Director, Marketing & Communications
mielkej@uwp.edu
262-595-3226

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