Student voters turned out in increased numbers this Tuesday, as compared to previous non-presidential elections.
Though no official statistics have been released by the Dane County Clerk's office, tentative estimates by the United Council of University of Wisconsin Students place collective turnout of UW-Madison students in Tuesday's election as high as 35 percent. This is several points better than previous non-presidential years, but still lower than the 50 percent average voter turnout for Dane County according Jeff Pertl, president of the United Council.
Nonetheless, Pertl said he believes that this year's figure may be too conservative.
\Most of the estimates have been sort of ad hoc; it's very difficult to estimate. I think student voter turnout is higher than [35 percent],"" he said. ""But I can't prove it.""
Pertl attributed the high turnout to an increase of party funding in Wisconsin and the first close gubernatorial race in 16 years.
""There has been a lot of money poured into Wisconsin in recent years. We've had some hotly contested races,"" he said.
Dane County Clerk Joseph Parisi cited other possible sources for the increasing turnout.
""Student areas historically have a low voter turnout,"" Parisi said. ""But we've seen a change, especially in the last four years, with Tammy Baldwin. Tammy Baldwin's campaign specifically targeted student voters.""
Scott Spector, spokesperson for the U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, campaign, said he believed students voted in higher numbers than in previous years.
""They overwhelmingly supported Tammy Baldwin. The current level [of student voters] is about on par with 1998. Ninety-eight was the first time students were aggressively targeted as a demographic,"" he said.
Though Tuesday's turnout was high, it was nonetheless lower than in 2000, which saw 70 percent of students voting. According to Faith Kurtyka, a UW-Madison junior and member of the Vote 2002 Coalition, this is largely because 2000 was a presidential year.
""We were up against significant barriers [in encouraging student voters] because this was not a presidential election year,"" she said. ""But turnout was good. It was about what we had expected.""
Students made a significant impact in smaller elections, such as the Jim Baumgart-Joe Leibham contest in the 9th Wisconsin state Senate district, which encompasses Sheboygan and Manitowoc. The race was decided by 23 votes.
But Pertl admitted there is much left to further the aims of students.
""When it came down to it, students were pivotal decision makers on the political landscape. We can really work to dispel the myth that students do not vote,"" he said.
