The Pennsylvania Center for Women and Politics (PCWP) is hosting voter registration events on the Chatham Shadyside campus quad to help students get ready to vote in the 2024 general election.
The tabling events are being held from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. every Tuesday through Thursday until the Oct. 21 registration deadline. Representatives from the PCWP will be present to provide guidance and answer students’ questions about registering to vote in Pennsylvania.
Every vote matters in 2024. With such a close presidential race and Congress almost evenly divided, young voters have an opportunity to turn the political tide and shape the future of the United States. PCWP is a vital resource for Chatham University students who want to make their voices heard.
“The mission of the PCWP is to educate and empower women for public leadership,” Dr. Dana Brown, executive director of the PCWP, said in an interview with the Communiqué. “Our goal is to help students learn to become engaged citizens and learn about the importance of elections.”
The PCWP held the first voting registration event of the year on National Voter Registration Day, Sept. 17. Based on student responses to the subsequent tabling events, Dr. Brown said that it seems “a supermajority of students are already registered.”
However, despite seemingly significant student engagement, the election is likely to be very close. This is especially true in Pennsylvania, which is an influential swing state.
Not only does Pennsylvania have the fifth-highest number of electoral votes of any state – 19 votes in total – but it also has the most electoral votes of all the swing states. And, in such an important battleground state, the major political parties are neck and neck with voter registration.
In 2012, voters registered as Democrats in Pennsylvania outnumbered voters registered as Republicans by 13.31%. However, that Democrat advantage dropped to 3.85% in 2024, according to voter registration data from the Pennsylvania Department of State.
Thankfully, Pennsylvania has taken steps to make voting more accessible.
“The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania actually makes it really easy now to register to vote,” Dr. Brown said.
Pennsylvania allows registration online using a driver’s license, state ID or Social Security Number. All students who are U.S. citizens and 18 years or older can vote in Pennsylvania, which includes students from out of state.
“We want Chatham students to know that by being a Chatham University student, they are indeed a resident of the state of Pennsylvania and can register here on campus,” Dr. Brown said.
The PCWP is available to help students facing any barriers to registration and to answer any voting-related questions students may have.
“We want to make sure that students know that getting registered to vote is not too difficult of a process and that they have an office here on campus that can help them through that voter registration process if they have questions, ” Dr. Brown said.
To make voting easier for students on Election Day, the Chatham Shadyside campus will have a polling site open from 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. in Laughlin Music Hall.
“We hope that at least [the students] come away with that sense of civic duty and are able to participate fully,” Dr. Brown said.
Students interested in empowering young people to engage in the democratic process during the 2024 election can volunteer for the PCWP to help run voter registration events. Interested students or students in need of support can visit the PCWP’s office in Braun 202.
