The next big vote

The big story this week was grade inflation, writ large in contraband photos on the front page of the 'Prince' and angry students talking about how the University ignored them.

Meanwhile, a smaller story was unfolding. Over the past year, politically active students on campus, most notably the leaders of the College Democrats and Republicans, have been lobbying the administration to change its rule barring partisan student groups from registering students to vote. This week, Princeton administrators, under fire for doing just the opposite, listened to students' concerns and lifted the ban. The result is a plethora of voter registration drives organized for the coming election season. The two partisan campus groups will renew their registration efforts this fall, and the USG will undertake a large-scale project with the implementation of Princeton Votes 2004. As many students complain about a grading policy imposed with too little of their input and none of their consent, the mechanisms for us to share our voices in the political realm are being put in place.

Now that the University will let our colleagues register us, the question is, will we vote?

The irony of our complaints about a lack of voice in the grade inflation process is hard to miss. Students were up in arms when Dean Malkiel introduced a proposal without student input, angered that the proposal was railroaded to a vote, and livid that only the faculty had the chance to influence its passage. Yet, when we're asked to share our opinions, to effect change, we so often pass up the chance.

Participation in USG elections is notoriously low, but it's nothing compared to the ridiculous numbers in which we do not vote in local, state and federal elections. Only about a third of eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 24 voted in the last presidential election, and the rates of participation have fallen dramatically since 1972, when eighteen year olds were first enfranchised. Do we only care about democracy when it influences our G.P.A.'s?

The reasons given for our generation's apathy are as hackneyed as they are various. Politicians are corrupt and distant. The issues don't affect us. One vote can't make a difference. These excuses are losing legitimacy fast. As our generation comes of age, and begins to take the reigns of a nation facing challenges at home and abroad, the politicians, the issues, and the deciding votes will have to be our own.

Here in Princeton, where 20 percent of Borough residents are students, our collective voice heard at the ballot box could make a difference in town-gown relations, including in how law enforcement deals with the eating clubs. This year, we even have a student seeking a seat on the Borough Council to support.

But the case for voting should not just be made locally. After all, our lives are more than grades on weekdays and beers on weekends. Surely, the issues at the forefront of national debate, from same-sex marriage to the war on terror to the economy in which we will all soon attempt to find jobs, have an impact on us as well. How can we pass by a voter registration booth in Frist or sit in our dorm rooms on election day when we are being handed a chance not just to express our will on these issues but to affect who makes that will a reality?

Politicians know we're a valuable commodity, an untapped block of supporters that could swing the November elections. They're seeking our votes in the awkward way of parents trying to befriend teenage children. Republicans are appearing on MTV. John Kerry is visiting colleges with Jon Bon Jovi under the banner "Change Starts With U." Their attempts are admirable, but change does start with us.

One year ago, when student groups on this campus discovered they would be barred from registering others to vote, they were angry. They made their views heard and pushed through change. By registering to vote, and casting a ballot come November, we can ensure that we, as a generation, are heard.

We may have lost the war on grade inflation, but there are bigger battles — and more important votes — in our future. Katherine Reilly is a Wilson School major from Short Hills, N.J. Her column runs on alternate Fridays. She can be reached at kcreilly@princeton.edu.