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My son is at UVA, and they had the forms available there for students who needed to request absentee ballots. I know that he, and several of his friends voted. For most of them, it was their first vote, and they took their duty very seriously. They're off to a good start!
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Hooray!</p>
<p>My sense is that most students don't change their residency and therefore vote by absentee ballot. However, I heard a story about an entire student body registering at school and swaying the local vote.</p>
<p>In the 90s, a number of local ballot initiative affected Fairfield University students (Fairfield, CT), especially those living off-campus. Some students started a campaign to get their classmates to establish residency in Fairfield and vote. In 1995, they got a student onto the town council.</p>
<p>Last night, I thought about that story and googled that student's name and found that he was running as a state rep in Maryland.</p>
<p>And so that some of us don't feel guilty, I doubt seriously if my Daughter even knew it was election day. Even if she did, she would not have voted. Her way of rebelling is to totally cut herself off from her home state. She would have no idea what the issues were, or who to vote for, and not really care.</p>
<p>Plus, "thinking in advance" is not one of her strong points. Unless absentee ballots were passed out at the dance studio, she's not going to have one!</p>
<p>I voted absentee.
My school had shuttles to nearby polling stations which were heavily utlized (then again, I do go to Duke, and lots of people registered in Durham because of the huge movement to register voters for fairly obvious reasons...). I was registered in NC for the Presidential election since it was a swing state, and I remember waiting on a line for over half an hour to vote filled with Duke students.</p>
<p>I know some people who voted here or for their home state elections. I know a lot of people who didn't vote, but the area where my school is isn't one that would swing easily. I was too young to vote.</p>
<p>D,now 23, switched her vote to Az when a student there,feeling she could have more impact on those local elections.Now she lives is St Louis and is thrilled to know her vote may have made a difference in electing a democratic woman senator from Mo,a closely contested and nationally watched race.S turned 18 today two days too late to vote.He really did want the opportunity this time around.</p>
<p>My daughter also registered in MO so as to have the possibility of making a difference in a swing state (things here in RI usually are pretty predictable), but was unable to vote because of a complication arising from having changed her address when she moved to an off campus apartment. She was very upset when the initial returns came in, but then rejoiced when "her" candidates and issues ended up doing so well. </p>
<p>My son (HS junior) has identified the politics of the states where the colleges he's likely to be interested in are located as being a huge factor in determining his preferences for where he'll apply. He, too, wants to go to school in a swing state (albeit a liberal leaning one) where he might have a chance to make a difference with his vote.</p>