An Ohio State student inserts their ballot into the ballot counter at the Ohio Union on Election Day. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
College students may not be prone to getting up early on any given day; Election Day morning, however, some messy-haired students donned sweatpants and grabbed the necessary voter identification before heading early to the polls.
According to the U.S. Elections Project, more than 100 million early votes were counted as of Tuesday, with the number of mail-in ballots and in-person votes continuing to climb. Despite the overwhelming number of early mail-in votes this year due to COVID-19, Ohio State students continued to cast in-person ballots.
“I wanted to vote in person this year because it is my first general election and I wanted to have the full experience like every other American,” Olivia Andresen, a second-year in English, said.
Andresen, who voted at the Summit United Methodist Church, said she felt comfortable with the COVID-19 precautions put in place, and that the environment made her feel excited to vote for the first time.
The plan included routine cleaning of voting machines and hygiene requirements for poll workers. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose strongly encouraged voters to wear a mask and practice social distancing, but voters were not denied a ballot if they did not comply.
Christopher Brady, a fifth-year in environment, economy, development and sustainability, said he chose to vote in person at the Ohio Union for several reasons. He said voting in person was more familiar and straightforward than voting absentee.
“The whole tedious thing of having to mail it, if you’re going to go out to cast your vote or put your mail-in ballot in a USPS box, you might as well just go in person if you’re already out,” Brady said.
Brady said the university and the Ohio Union took every COVID-19 precaution he could’ve anticipated.
“Obviously, you can’t really have everybody social distancing every second, but you can take different precautions, like everyone wears masks,” Brady said.
Jake Suraba, a second-year in computer science, came out to the Union to place his first-ever presidential vote. He said convenience was his largest determinant when it came to voting in person on Election Day.
“I go here, and I don’t have a car on campus, so to get to the early stations was kind of hard,” Suraba said.
Convenience seemed to be a factor that influenced when and how more students than just Suraba voted. Paige Miller, a second-year in finance and Spanish, said she voted on Election Day because of the proximity to the Union and the more straightforward nature of voting in person.
“Honestly, it’s just easy to get here, it’s right across the street from me. I figured it would be the easiest way,” Miller said.
