December 2006

Democracy done different
Ohio students take part in maiden election voyage

By Michael D. Altman
QCFMag.com

Lydia Gerthoffer, a politically active Ohio University student chose not to “get out the vote” for either party this year.

In doing so, she made history.

This election year was characterized by mudslinging and partisanship; however, some Ohio students curbed their political devotion on Election Day. Instead, they conducted the maiden study to make sure the election system works for all parties involved.

Gerthoffer served as a “structured observer” for the study conducted by the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy (CSED) that took place in Franklin County and Summit County in Ohio. The study was also run in Utah County, Utah, where the CSED is located, at Brigham Young University.

 

  

“They say everybody has a right to vote, but up until now there were not neutral observers to ensure that right,” said Gerthoffer. She described her job as observing the inside and outside of the polling locations during election hours. Gerthoffer and her colleagues were directed to fill out surveys detailing variables such as effectiveness of lighting, handicapped accessibility and helpfulness of poll workers at each of the six locations they visited – an election day secret shopper of sorts.

Stephen Mockabee, a professor of Political Science at the University of Cincinnati, and several of his students took part in the observation. He said that students were excited to make a difference outside of their political party during the election.

“I talked to some students after the 2004 election, and they felt that their efforts didn’t make a difference,” Mockabee said. “[This year] they felt like they could do a good public service.”

 

These students were interested in a working democracy from a neutral perspective, according to Dustin Slade, research associate at the CSED.

“One factor was a desire to learn more, be on the inside of political science research. It was billed as an effort to improve democracy,” he said.

William Anspach, a University of Cincinnati political science student, describes himself as an active Democrat. However, this year he saw a bigger picture.

“As someone who studies politics, it is also interesting to see things from a nonpartisan point of view,” he said. “It is interesting to see how democracy in action really works.”

Like Lydia Gerthoffer, William Anspach says if he were not involved in the project, he would have been volunteering for his congressional candidate this year as he did in 2004 for his presidential preference.

Gerthoffer was one of only a handful of Ohio University students who were joined by representatives from the University of Cincinnati, the University of Akron, The Ohio State University, Kent State University and Denison University.

More in this Issue...
 

In addition to the first year for the Structured Observation Project, it was the first year students had been used in Ohio exit polling, according to the Brigham Young University Structured Observation Web site. Students also surveyed poll workers about the quality of their training as part of the study.

Young people participated also more in the voting booth in 2006 than they had in years. About 24 percent of voters under the age of 30 voted in the November 7 mid-term election.

“This looks like the highest in 20 years," Mark Lopez, research director of the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, told Reuters News Service. "Unfortunately, we can't say if it's a record because we don't have good comparable data before 1986."

Stephen Mockabee believes that it was critical to get students involved in the monitoring of this election because of the arrival of the new technology, which included touch screen voting booths in Franklin County.

“The next time it will be a presidential contest,” Mockabee said. “The stakes will be higher. It will be important to monitor the scrutiny of the system under increased stress.”

editors@queencityforum.com

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