Jonathan Becker Talks to Inside Higher Ed about Bard’s On-Campus Polling Site

Voting-access advocates have long been concerned about the removal of campus polling places. Inside Higher Ed (IHE) reports on the issue and news that only five weeks from the 2024 election, Purdue University students and staff will not be able to vote on campus on Election Day for the first time in four presidential elections. Speaking with IHE, Jonathan Becker, executive vice president, vice president for academic affairs, and director of the Center for Civic Engagement at Bard College, emphasized the importance of “predictability” in the voting process. Bard is now in its fifth year of having a consistent polling site on campus. Becker said that this predictability has been an asset for the local board of elections, which has improved the efficiency with which they run a voting site, as well as for the students and community members who have the benefit of going to the same place to vote from one election to the next. After two decades of fighting for a polling place on Bard’s campus, the College successfully advocated for on-campus voting to be enshrined into law in New York. In 2022, state legislation was passed that mandates polling places on college campuses with 300 or more registered voters.

Further reading:
Bard College Secures Fully Functioning On-Campus Polling Site for 2022 General Election

Post Date: 10-07-2024