Voter Registration By Students Raises Cloud of Consequences

by Aaron Goldstein // Published September 25, 2008
On September 7, 2008, the New York Times published an article entitled "Voter Registration By Students Raises Cloud of Consequences" which details plans of many different states to punish college students for re-registering to their college campus. (To view this article click here)

The Virginia Board of Elections has claimed that if a college student registers on a Virginia campus that the state has the right to "remove the student as dependents on their parent's tax returns" or even lose financial aid and scholarships. Due to a 1979 Supreme Court ruling that determined the legality of a student registering to vote on a college campus, there have been several attempts at making restrictions on the rights of college students.

South Carolina has also made it a requirement for a student to show that they have an intention on keeping their residency for several years before they are permitted on registering to vote on a college campus.

As stated on the Maryland Board of Elections website, "if you do not consider your parent's home to be your home and do not intend to return there after school, your school address may be your residence." (For more specifics click here)

Comments currently closed for Voter Registration By Students Raises Cloud of Consequences

  • [...] to vote, even if they are not planning to stay in Virginia after the election. We blogged back in September that the Virginia Board of Elections was threatening students attending Virginia colleges and [...]

    Posted by FairVote.blog » Blog Archive » Virginia Task Force Recommends New Election Guidelines, 2009-08-13 13:06:43 (4 years ago)

  • I think if you live in the state you should be able to register anywhere in that state.

    Posted by Mike, 2008-10-28 19:04:15 (5 years ago)

  • Mike, Yes I understand that the Virginia SBE has recently tuned down their accusations but it is still evident that other states are unwilling to allow college students to register on campus due to the overwhelming amounts of citizens registering to vote for the November election. On another note, I was present at a press conference relating to the introduction to the Student Voter Opportunity to Encourage Registration Act of 2008, and it was evident that there is bipartisan support for mandating that all universities that receive federal money provide a program for voter registration for its students.

    Posted by Aaron, 2008-09-25 10:59:12 (5 years ago)

  • Aaron, you're coming a bit late to the "student registration is an issue" party. And everyone knows when you're coming late you should at least be prepared! You're missing a lot of the key points about student registration, but most importantly the VA SBE has revised their position (and in particular their website). Let's try not to spread around misleading information.

    Posted by Mike, 2008-09-25 10:50:36 (5 years ago)