(Autumn Dennis | Gephardt Institute)

On Sept. 26, a group of over 35 undergraduate volunteers and members of WashU Votes gathered in the Gephardt Institute’s Stix International House in a frenzy of chatter and excitement. In just a few moments, the group was about to advance to the South 40 for WashU Votes’ annual Canvass the Campus.

Entering the Stix House, volunteers chatted over slices of pizza and discussed the intricacies of voter registration. As a prerequisite to volunteer at the event, students completed Turbo training, where they were taught how to use the TurboVote software to help register students to vote. By 6 p.m., volunteers were all set to run through their mock scripts, preparing to engage with people at the doors of their dorms just 30 minutes later.

Marcellus Thorsen, a sophomore who serves as Programming Chair of WashU Votes, was in charge of organizing this year’s annual Canvass the Campus. Aside from making sure all volunteers were equipped with a script, a tracking sheet, food, and an assigned group, Thorsen also helped in expanding the canvass initiative this year to cover Village House and Lopata Hall in the village. 

“The hardest part is organizing all the people as moving parts,” Thorsen said. “With this election season, there was a lot of interest in WashU Votes and what we do, so we had — at least in my experience of canvassing — one of the largest canvases we have ever had. That definitely was a challenge to manage.”

As WashU Votes finished up training and marched to the South 40, small groups quickly dispersed into their assigned residential colleges, where they would embark on door-to-door canvassing. For first-year students who answered their doors, they would be asked a series of questions related to the status of their voter registration, whether they needed any help with the process, and if they knew of election resources available on campus. Flyers pertaining to all informational resources were left on unanswered doors. 

Importantly, even though they encourage students to be empowered in the voter process, WashU Votes reinforces and adheres to non-partisan standards. 

“Part of the work we’re doing is informing people of their laws and practices,” said Amelia Letson, senior and co-president. “We don’t tell people how to vote. We tell them information to empower them to find that information on their own.”

Emma Feldmeier, a sophomore majoring in Political Science and a volunteer at WashU Votes, agreed. Despite her political affiliations toward certain charged issues, “it’s not the time and place to convince people to vote one way or the other,” she said.

(Autumn Dennis | Gephardt Institute)

Every volunteer who showed up to canvass on a chilly Thursday night carried their own motivations that brought them there. For some, it was a singular issue close to their heart that they wanted to see reflected in the polls. For others, it was preserving the fundamental system that holds our government in place. 

“I really think democracy is a precious thing that is worth fighting for, worth working for, and it is something that we should struggle to preserve,” said Richard Gimbel, a first-year. “It’s a civic liberty to vote, and it’s a civic duty. It’s a beautiful thing to see in action, and I’m excited to get to work.”

Gimbel was convinced to apply to WashU after learning of Gephardt Institute’s offerings, which he believes should be especially utilized in such a critical election year. As someone who has been interested in civic and voter engagement for years, Gimbel believes he is “getting more out of his canvassing experience than the very people [he is] signing up to vote.”

Letson emphasized the importance of civic engagement as she believes it sets individuals on a path to be well-informed citizens for the rest of their life. Given that college encompasses such formative years of one’s life, Letson believes that individuals have a duty to themselves and the rest of society to be engaged, even during non-election years. 

“It is wonderful that we have such an amazing turnout for this event, but WashU Votes exists during non-presidential election years too,” Letson said. “We have done Canvass the Campus for local elections too, and getting interest drummed up for that can sometimes be more challenging.”

This year especially, WashU Votes has emphasized its focus on helping students navigate the changing landscape of voting requirements between different states, which have made it harder to be engaged in the political process.

“My sophomore year Missouri introduced a new photo ID law, so navigating that change was difficult in the way that we talked to students,” Letson said on the 2022 requirement of a government issued Missouri ID or passport to cast a ballot in Missouri.

Because WashU gets a lot of students coming from out of state, many are unaware of Missouri’s specific voting laws and requirements. WashU Votes emphasizes that as long as students are U.S. citizens and eligible to vote in other respects, they have a WashU campus address and are therefore eligible to vote in Missouri. Though most students who answered their doors claimed that they had already registered to vote, they still confirmed with WashU Votes that they knew where they were going to cast their ballot, and WashU Votes made sure they had access to additional information they maybe weren’t aware of previously.

As the hub for engaged citizenship, dedicated to teaching and developing future civic leaders, Gephardt Institute is the basis for WashU Votes’ work on campus and the greater St. Louis community, and drew all these volunteers to the program.

“There are so many different ways for students to get involved at Gephardt, no matter what their major is or what they’re passionate about,” said Autumn Dennis, Digital Communications Specialist at Gephardt. “Our biggest strength is providing the opportunity for students to engage those passions and help to discover on their own terms and find their own voice.”

Feldmeier emphasized just how helpful Gephardt is as a resource in exposing students to the broader St. Louis community. Whether it be going to local community events or naturalization ceremonies down in the Eagletown Courthouse to register new citizens to vote, WashU practices the mantra “in St. Louis, for St. Louis.”

Overall, the biggest thing that Gephardt emphasizes, the sole motivation of every volunteer while canvassing door-to-door on a late Thursday night, is that civic and voter engagement is the heart of American democracy, and it is the most important responsibility we share as citizens.

“It’s so important to vote with this election coming up. Every vote matters and it’s gonna be a really close election,” Feldmeier said. “It’s a little scary, but we have a lot of power to make a difference.”

(Autumn Dennis | Gephardt Institute)