PLAY
Party like a patriot Be a maverick and shake up election season
By Brianne Pfannenstiel bphannestiel@kansan.com
Because real politicians can't always be as entertaining as their Saturday Night Live couptrates, students are trying to shake up politics as usual this election season by adding a few simple twists to traditional political events. For many of us, this will be the first time we get to vote in a national election. Here are a few ways Lawrence youth are adding a little fun to the process by stepping up to promote political awareness and involvement in fresh ways that appeal to younger voters.
Buhler senior Michael Gray decided to help host a watch party with an "Americana" theme for the vice presidential debate on Oct. 2 complete with fried chicken and mashed potatoes.
Political party
"We're all sort of political nerds," Gray says. "We're all involved in student government and we talk about the election, so [the debates] provided new commentary for us to discuss."
Although 52.4 million people watched the first presidential debate, that number could hardly compare to the nearly 70 million who tuned in to see Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joe Biden battle it out Oct. 2 in the VP debates. Students had plenty of options to choose from when deciding where to tune in on the action, and whether it was at Abe and Jake's, the Kansas Union or Nunemaker Center on campus, students found exciting ways to spice
up the evening.
The watch party at Abe and Jake's Landing began with a conference call with Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to generate discussion before the debate was shown on a big screen TV. Other students chose to participate in a focus group at Nunemaker Center. Manhattan junior Rita Weiss says she enjoys the atmosphere of watching the debates in a group.
"I like watching with this group," Weiss says. "I like hearing people's thoughts as it's going on. I definitely had my own opinions, but this initiates dialogue."
Study participants at Nunemaker turned dials that corresponded to how they felt about the candidates' words as they spoke. The data compiled at KU will eventually be combined with data from colleges across the country, according to study organizer Mary Banwart, associate professor of communication studies.
Get out the vote
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, only 41.9 percent of people aged 18-24 voted during the last presidential election in 2004, a full 10 percent lower than voter turnout for people ages 25-44. That was a dramatic increase from the 32.3 percent of 18-24 year olds who turned out in the 2000 election, but activists are looking for an even bigger youth turnout this November. Many student activists are taking it upon themselves to see that young people are getting registered by creating exciting ways to entice them to the polls.
Kansas for Obama and the Douglas
Contributed photo
Election night doesn't have to mean a boring evening sitting in front of the TV watching CNN. Costumes and politically themed food and drinks can give anyone a good excuse to throw an election party.
18
October 23,2008