If you're a college student and you aren't planning on voting on Nov. 2 then you are one of few.
A new study released by Harvard University's Institute of Politics reported that college students are much more interested in politics, more likely to identify with a party and more likely to vote.
Eighty-one percent of respondents to the survey reported that they would definitely be voting this year, while three percent reported that they had already voted.
The Harvard study is based on a telephone survey of about 1,200 students from 210 four-year colleges across the nation. The survey was conducted from Oct. 7 to Oct. 13 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.
A majority of college students responding to the survey said they intended to vote for John Kerry.
The 10-point lead that Kerry held over Bush in a similar March survey has grown to 13 percent, according to the study.
However, 44 percent of the respondents said they believed Bush would win the election, while 34 percent said they believed Kerry would win.Frank Harvey, sophomore English major, said he believes University of Memphis students favor Kerry over Bush and he has noticed increasing support for Kerry on campus, especially during class discussions.
"When we have discussions in my world government class, almost everyone seems to be in favor of Kerry," Harvey said. "There are a few Bush supporters, but they don't usually speak up."
Some U of M students, however, said they believe that Bush is more popular at The U of M.
"I think there are more republicans at The University of Memphis," said Robbie Goss, junior communications major. "I've seen a bunch of people wearing 'Tigers for Bush' stickers at football games."
Jim Vandiveer, president of the College Democrats, said that college student political preferences typically depend on the location of the institution they attend.
"Urban centers are typically democratic strongholds," Vandiveer said. Students' responses to the Harvard survey varied on topics related to the personalities of the candidates.
Forty-nine percent said they believed Bush is a strong leader, while 36 percent said they believed they saw a strong leader in Kerry.Bush's supporters have remained consistent, while many undecided voters have moved to favor Kerry, according to the study.
Fifty percent of the respondents said they believed Kerry "shared their values", while 57 percent said they believed that Bush "takes a clear stand on issues."
The study also reported that 87 percent of college students say that they are registered to vote and 91 percent said that they care "a great deal" which presidential candidate wins the election.
Vandiveer said he believes political participation is increasing because certain political issues are extremely important to college-aged individuals in the upcoming election.
"I have seen people walking around campus with homemade signs and T-shirts," Vandiveer said. "Just to see the amount of participation in this election - it's phenomenal."
Cory Moore, freshman communications major, said the level of political participation on The U of M campus surprises him.
"Everyone seems really into this one," Moore said. "There are a lot of issues at stake."
