Despite several voting and registration campaigns by campus groups, fewer on-campus students showed up to cast their ballot this year than the 1998 midterm elections.

Steve Kline, deputy county clerk, said in 1998, 274 on-campus students showed up to vote at campus polls while 209 students came this year. At the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union, where 743 people were registered to vote, 141 voted and Carman Hall drew 133 voters when 555 were registered in 1998.

More students were also registered to vote in 1998 in the precincts that included the Union and Carman Hall. Kline said this year, 1,088 people were registered while 1,298 were registered last year.

Richard Wandling, chair of the political science department, said he was “puzzled” by the low voter turnout on campus because of the strong message asking students to go to the polls. He expected the turnout to be at least 5 to 10 percent higher throughout the county and thought more students would contribute to that increase.

“The ‘Get out the Vote’ effort was stronger this year than in previous years,” he said. “I was impressed by the efforts (of) Student Government and other organizations.”

Though Wandling was surprised by the low turnout, he said several reasons could have contributed to the decrease.

Students may have been discouraged in an election that didn’t appear close, he said. Winning candidates for governor and attorney general were well ahead at the start of campaigns, which may have sent a message that voting would not matter.

The campaigns may have also lacked the issues or debates that would have drove students to the polls.

“To me it’s obvious that something didn’t grab them during this election,” he said.

Andy McNitt, a political science professor, said he was not surprised by the declining student turnout because it follows a national trend of decreased voter turnout, especially among people ages 18 to 20 years old.

“Off-year elections have been dropping throughout the county,” he said.

In Coles County, the voter turnout reached 50 percent, which is actually above average. The nationwide turnout for off-year elections is at 36 percent, he said.

McNitt said while the voter registration drives were a valiant effort, national trends that show voter apathy are hard to break or reverse.

“Even with voter registration drives it’s very hard to get people out to vote,” he said.

“You have to have something that is so overwhelming… that everyone would be affected.”

Young voters are increasingly disinterested in politics and political issues, he said. They also are growing more cynical about government and candidates’ performances. College campuses are more susceptible to voter apathy because campuses are not considered home to most students, and many do not register or do not take an active role in the politics of their college residence.

Precincts on campus can also hold bad lists because students register and then move away.

“I suspect (voter turnout) is a little bit higher than the total because there are a lot of bad names on the lists,” he said.