WILL KARR
Special to The Leader
While political parties and the nation as a whole appear to be growing more divided, SUNY Fredonia’s American Democracy Project is working to facilitate dialogue and conversation around politics on campus.
ADP is an organization on campus that strives to promote civic engagement. As a result of the increase in political polarization in recent years, many people have become disillusioned with politics, causing them to become apolitical. ADP is aiming to reintroduce politics to members of the public who have become disengaged.
“The main goal of ADP this semester is to focus on the midterm elections coming up in November. A lot of what we want to focus on is voter registration and voter outreach,” said Allyson Youngs, student representative for ADP and a senior communication major.
Midterm elections occur every two years in November, giving Americans the opportunity to elect senators and representatives from their state into congress.
“One of my biggest things was that politics can always feel so polarized. But, through my role with ADP, I’ve been able to see that there are ways to ensure that politics is not so polarized,” Youngs said. “I think the best part for me personally has been just being able to unite the student body under the common goal of just being politically active, no matter what ‘side’ you are on.”
ADP is hoping to change the way politics are viewed. This past month, they have been partnering with the League of Women Voters (LWV), a non-partisan organization, to help register Fredonia students from all backgrounds to vote. For the past few weeks, voting registration tables have been set up on campus every Wednesday.
“A student can come to the booth to pick up a registration form, and the people at the booth will help them fill it out,” Youngs said. “It’s basically all so that students have an opportunity to be involved and encouraged to vote.”
If you are interested in registering, the group will be hosting its next registration drive on Wednesday, Sept. 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m outside of the Williams Center.
According to a representative from the LWV, if at least 300 students register to vote, Fredonia can have voting booths set up on campus for the midterm elections. As of Wednesday, Sept. 14, there have been a total of only 50 signups.
By bringing registration booths to campus, ADP is making voting accessible to students and is introducing politics to new audiences.
“ADP’s underlying goal is to make politics more approachable,” Youngs said.“As someone who’s never been politically active myself, it’s been nice to get an idea of how important it is to vote and to help other students realize it as well.”
If you would like to receive more information about ADP, you can follow or direct message them at their Instagram page, @adpfred.