Marilee Lorusso
Sports Editor
With the presidential race heating up and elections just around the corner, the Campus Activities Board encouraged University of La Verne students to head to the polls and cast their votes on not only their choice for the next President of the United States, but also for the next student leaders of the Associated Students of the University of La Verne.
“I wanted to make it easy to vote,” Toya Johnson-Moore, third year senior criminology major and CAB multicultural chairwoman, said. “This way it makes it easy and fun.”
On April 3, CAB and ASULV sponsored the Poll Dance for students to learn and register to vote, as well as to get information about ASULV and the upcoming student government elections.
During the day, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., students could take part in a mock presidential election to vote for their favorite presidential candidate.
Voter registration cards were available so that students could register to really vote in the elections. “I Voted” stickers were also distributed to enhance the event and make it more realistic and fun.
Information about the ASULV elections was also available, including information on when the elections took place, information on the candidates and buttons to spread the word about the elections.
Johnson-Moore said around 30 people voted.
A dance capped off the day.
Most of the students in attendance were CAB members and ASULV candidates and some felt the event was not publicized very much, even though electronic invitations were sent via Facebook.
At 9 p.m., students were invited to Davenport Dining Hall to let loose and take part in a dance.
Results from the mock presidential elections were posted, and those in attendance were able to meet some of the candidates running for ASULV offices.
The candidates in attendance were able to introduce themselves to the student body around 10 p.m. and give a little information on their platforms and what they hope to accomplish if and when they are elected into office.
“It (Poll Dance) will help show who will be elected for next year’s ASULV,” said Cassie Hobbs, freshman liberal studies major and senator-at-large candidate.
Several students came out just to support their friends who were running for an ASULV office.
“I definitely think it’s important to get people involved in events,” sophomore liberal studies major Brittany Lokar said.
Lokar was supporting her friends running for office and said that the event was important so that the student body could get to know the potential student leaders of the University of La Verne.
Johnson-Moore said students often focus on either the educational aspect of events or just the social aspects, but this event mixed both together for a fun and informative experience.
“It’s a way of bringing the educational and fun together,” Johnson-Moore said.
Johnson-Moore said the upcoming presidential elections are just as important for college students as everyone else.
“It does affect them as much as it affects everyone in the country,” Johnson-Moore said.
Students came and went throughout the evening with about 20 students present at all times.
They enjoyed mingling, and dancing to the latest hits provided by a disc jockey.
Students even played a game of duck-duck-goose to get the night started.
In the mock presidential election, Barack Obama came in first with 17 votes, followed by John McCain with four votes, Hillary Rodham Clinton came in third with three votes and there was a three-way tie between Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul and Michael Bloomberg with one vote a piece.
Food and drinks, including mini hot dogs and hamburgers, which were funded by ASULV and provided by Sodexho, added to the patriotic theme of the night.
Marilee Lorusso can be reached at mlorusso@ulv.edu.
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