SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – Syracuse University student Joseph Lauria, a freshman from Bridgewater, New Jersey says he wishes he could have the experience of going to the voting booths in person. Instead, he will be casting his first vote via absentee ballot.
“I wouldn’t know because I’ve never voted before, but I’m assuming it’s harder to do the absentee ballots than it is to just go to the voting booth and vote,” Lauria said.
Within the last year, many of Flint Hall’s over 500 residents celebrated their 18th birthday, and along with it they received the ability to vote in their first general election. Not only is it the first election for many Syracuse University freshmen, but exercising the right to vote in 2020 means having to adapt. Due to COVID-19 and SU’s Stay Safe Pledge, many student voters chose to receive mail-in ballots for this election.
Some students, like Gabriella Sadowski from Sandy Hook, Connecticut said receiving the ballot in the mail at school isn’t too hard if you know who to contact.
“I had to call the Newtown registrar to have it sent to this address at Syracuse,” she said. “It was pretty easy actually.”
Sadowski also said the instructions on her ballot were simple to follow. It explained exactly how to fill it out and where to sign. It even gave her a guide on how to put it in the mail, something that other students seemed to struggle with.
When asked if he knows how to mail his ballot in after he completes it, Ethan Betancourt said he may need a little help.
“I’ll probably just ask my mom,” Betancourt said.
His friend Aidan Cronin nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, same.”
According to the United States Postal Service, one in five Generation Zers said that mailing a letter was not easy and 20 percent reported not feeling at least fairly confident that they could correctly address an envelope if tasked. In dormitories on campus, such as Flint Hall, there is a mail slot right next to the student mailboxes. As long as the envelopes are filled out correctly, the university will ship out the ballots.
The responses from freshmen about their voting experiences varied. Most students reported feelings of enthusiasm mixed with anxiety. Many students also claimed to have open dialogues with other first year students about the process. Now more than ever, Junior Gizelle Vidal has been encouraging freshmen to do their research about voting and to watch out for mail-in deadlines.
“A lot of students from out of state don’t realize is there are very strict deadlines when it comes to mailing in your mail in ballot,” Vidal said. “Just being conscientious of those dates as well as knowing how to fill out a ballot are super important. And also knowing who is on your ballot and what those positions actually do.”
