A streamlined voting process enabled a smooth Election Day for on-campus Washington University undergraduate voters, as Republicans swept Missouri’s elections and won a swing House district just west of the University.

Just 52.5% of eligible students voted in 2016 and 41.8% in 2018, but as students head to the polls today, there is optimism that student voter turnout will increase from past years to meet WashU Votes’ goal of 62.5%.

In a short amount of space, #ThisCivicMoment asks contributors to consider questions such as, “How will you act in this civic moment?”, “How will you respond to this civic moment?”, and “What are you committing to doing as a result of this civic moment?”

WashU Votes, a partner of the Washington University Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement, is aiming to increase student voter turnout for the Nov. 3 presidential election by 10 points from 2016.

It’s certainly a stressful time of year. You have to deal with midterms, the ever-depressing winter weather, the whirlwind election cycle and, to top it all off, now everyone is telling you that you should probably get a job this summer.

College Democrats and the Gephardt Institute have ramped up efforts to maintain high political engagement within the student body as the March 10 Democratic primaries and the November presidential election approach.

The 2018 midterm elections marked a considerable increase in voter participation amongst Washington University students–in comparison to 15.9% turnout in 2014, the recent midterms brought 41.8% of University students to the booths.

Although the Ferguson shooting occurred before current Washington University undergraduate students came to the campus, the conversations regarding systemic racism that ensued continue to be relevant to and affect the Wash. U. and Greater St. Louis communities as well as the nation at large. That is why the Gephardt Institute of Civic and Community Engagement is holding the event “New in the Lou: What Does Ferguson Mean to Me?” on Tuesday, September 10, 2019.

The Center for Diversity and Inclusion, the Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement and the Office for International Students and Scholars relocated their office spaces over summer break. The offices moved to better serve students, meet the needs of each office and to provide additional space for the offices’ growth.

Washington University junior Luka Cai is establishing a helpline at PrideCenter to serve the LGBTQIA* community in St. Louis.