A mere four short days away, on Tuesday, Nov. 5 is the United States Presidential election. In Pennsylvania, candidates for the U.S. House and Senate, state House and Senate, and commonwealth row offices are also on the ballot. Local and county elections, like the state representative slot for which Lewisburg native Nick Jacobson is currently running against incumbent David Rowe, are often overshadowed by the general nation’s Presidential focus, though local positions are just as important and impactful to citizens on a scale much closer to home— if not more so.
Bucknell students who are registered to vote in Pennsylvania under their campus addresses are assigned one of four in-person voting locations, depending on their housing. Those who live in a specific hall, apartment, building or any other campus housing must report to their designated voting location. The designations are as follows:
Larison Hall (on Bucknell’s campus): Edwards House, Galloway House, the Gateways, Harris Hall, Larison Hall, Hunt Hall, Roberts, Trax, Kress, Seventh Street House, Smith Hall, St. George Street Affinity Houses, Vedder Hall and the Ziegler House.
Weis Center for the Performing Arts (on Bucknell’s campus): Campus Lane Houses (Clauss, Kindig, Wagner), Chi Phi, Fran’s House, Global House, Lambda Chi Alpha, McDonnell, South Campus Apartments, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Sigma Chi, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Strohecker Farm Lane Affinity and Fraternity Houses and Swartz Hall.
Eichorn Middle School, 2057 Washington Ave., Lewisburg: West Apartments and Modules.
Union County Courthouse, 103 S. 2nd St., Lewisburg: Phi Gamma Delta, University Avenue Houses (20, 23, 28, 63 and 64).
For those whose polling places are off-campus locations, do not be deterred from voting! Bucknell is offering a regularly scheduled shuttle for students who do not have access to a car or personal transport on campus. The shuttle will run every half an hour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Nov. 5, departing from several locations around campus for easy accessibility. At the top of the hour, the shuttle will begin its journey at Academic West; from there, it will stop at Coleman Hall (near the Weis Center voting location) and Vedder Hall (near the Larison location) within six minutes. It will then make a targeted stop 11 minutes after the hour at the West Campus Apartments, by the walking tunnel, to pick up students who need to vote at the Eichorn Middle School location; from there, it will stop at the Union County Government Building upon students’ request to drop off mail-in ballots. At 19 minutes after the hour, it will stop at Eichorn Middle School, followed by a final stop at the Union County courthouse before returning to Bucknell’s campus to restart the route.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. around the state. Elections, especially on a local level, often come down to smaller margins than one might realize. Your voice matters, and it will be heard. Voting takes very little time out of your day, but it can make a huge impact on you and your community. Get out and vote!
