UB students go to the polls for first presidential election

An idyllic 716-autumn day set the stage Tuesday as hundreds of first-time UB student voters made their way to the Center for Tomorrow to cast ballots in their first presidential election.

“They leave here beaming with glee,” said Mark Valente, an election volunteer who was among officials greeting students as they lined up to cast their votes in what is turning out to be an unprecedented election. “They are absolutely elated when they leave.”

Throughout the day, the UB polling place hosted a steady stream of students — most voting for the first time — as well as community members residing within the voting district. By 9:30 a.m., on-site election officials said more than 50 voters had already cast their ballots, about 70% of them students. Election officials said they expected voters would be coming to the polling place until it closed at 7 p.m.

The mood of voters seemed as upbeat and optimistic as election officials had hoped.

“I feel excited,” said Chloe Davis, 20, a junior from New York City, wearing a Governors Ball concert sweatshirt and holding her "I voted" sticker. “I feel it’s good to actually have the chance to make a difference. I know New York is usually a blue state, but I feel it’s my duty to vote.

“When I was younger, I’d go to the polls with my family every year just to vote in local elections. I remember during the presidential election everyone was always so excited. So I am excited to finally get my turn,” Davis said.

“I figured I would get here early before the long lines get here.”

Lynn Endres, chairwoman of the Amherst 40 election district, noted that the student voters “come in smiling with a little uncertainty on their faces. But they are happy to do it.”

Recognizing that the voting process would be unfamiliar — and perhaps overwhelmingly — for many of the first-time student voters, UB’s Office of Student Engagement and its UB Votes initiative stepped up to help.

Prior to the election, they held countless tabling events around campus, hosted phone banks and registered hundreds of new voters.

“We really hope to create a civic engagement culture here on campus over the long term,” said R.J. Haq, assistant director of civic engagement and chair of UB Votes. “With every election cycle, we’re doing civic engagement, voter registration, voter education, voter activation.”

First-time voter Carrera, an 18-year-old public health sophomore from Brooklyn who asked to be identified only by his last name, reflected what Center for Tomorrow election workers called the upbeat and dignified mood of those coming to vote.

“I feel proud because I’m the first in my family to vote because I come from an immigrant family,” said Carrera, whose father is from Ecuador and his mother from Japan. “I am representing myself, but also my family.

“I feel great. My mom is ecstatic about it. She’s like ‘my son is voting!’”

By midday, election interest on campus had soared. Student Engagement set up a tent, with refreshments, stickers, tiny bouncing balls and a trivia wheel, outside the Center for Tomorrow. It became a rallying point for those gathering at the polling site.

“As students approach the table, we’ve been cheering to celebrate their interest in voting,” said Rachel DiDominzio, associate director for community and civic engagement.

At 1 p.m., the line of those waiting to vote inside the Center for Tomorrow extended out the door; by 4 p.m. it stretched nearly to Flint Road. Isabella Bottiglieri, a sophomore studying psychology from the Hudson Valley town of Beacon, waited more than 30 minutes before reaching the front of the line.

“Honestly, I didn’t mind waiting,” she said minutes before getting her ballot. “I thought it would be worse. Honestly, I view voting as a very big civic duty. To be able to vote for the first time is pretty crazy.”

Valente said workers lined up chairs to help those waiting in line. Those waiting would wait for the chair ahead of them to be free, then move forward one chair at a time. Despite the delay — Endres said she had not expected such a crowd; the lone laptop to confirm voters’ status remained on overload throughout the afternoon — the mood remained patient, calm and civilized.

“This is not like other parts of the country,” Valente noted.

At the end of the line, almost out the door, Christian Staab, a senior mechanical engineering major from Queens, waited with others to cast his vote.

“I still think it’s worth it,” said Staab.