Student Senate approved excused absences to aid voters and poll workers

A bill proposing that Ohio University allows excused absences for students going to vote or serving as a poll worker was passed by the Student Senate, Graduate Senate and Faculty Senate in early October. However, it is still up to the university if or when the bill will be enacted.

Student Senate Governmental Affairs Commissioner Dan Gordillo wrote the bill and acknowledged that it is unlikely that the bill will be enacted before the upcoming midterm elections. However, he was hopeful that it would take effect before the 2024 election, pending university approval. 

If passed by the university, the bill would give students an excused absence from class if they provide proof that they were voting or serving as a poll worker on election days.

Ohio U’s  Graduate Student Senate passed the resolution on Sept. 20, Faculty Senate passed it on Oct. 10 and Student Senate on Oct. 12.

Gordillo explained that he has always been a proponent for making Election Day a national holiday. 

“We can’t really do that right now, that’s out of my control, but I can get the next best thing, which is an excused absence if you’re going to go and vote,” Gordillo said.

Gordillo met with Athens Mayor Steve Patterson to discuss the bill. Patterson was supportive of the section granting excused absences for poll workers, but he expressed concern over excused absences to vote.

“My reasoning behind it, and this is me being a former professor for 18 years, is that I could see it potentially becoming abused…I just voted yesterday, my wife and I went up and voted. It took us a grand total of, you know, 15 minutes,” Patterson said.

Patterson also discussed low voter turnout in high-density student precincts.

“I have seen both primaries and general elections to where the numbers, the turnout at those high-density student precincts, is extremely low. When I say extremely low, you know, four people turn out all day long.”

However, Patterson added, “It's not necessarily because students don't want to vote or don't care to vote. It could be that they are voting absentee in the communities that maybe were their permanent addresses.”

Gordillo stated that he votes by absentee ballot but expressed that the goal of the bill is to provide as many people as possible with the opportunity to vote. 

“I think it’s not so much about voter turnout here as opposed to just it being available,” Gordillo said. He went on to stress the importance of getting information out about other ways to vote including early voting and absentee ballots.

The 2022 general election is on Nov. 8. To find out more about voting in Athens, community members can check out The New Political’s Voter’s Guide or go to the Board of Elections website.