“The University does not exist in a bubble and every action makes a difference,” said Cole Plominski, president of the Get Out The Vote initiative on campus.
As president of Get Out The Vote, Plominski, a senior studying political science, spearheads campaigns to mobilize resources to increase voter engagement. “In the 2020 election, we saw nearly 85% of the campus population register to vote and 72% vote in the election. The journey we’ve taken is extraordinary,” he said.
Boasting student voting rates that exceed national averages and rival higher education institutions with the highest engagement, the University of Miami was recently awarded for its work in promoting democracy and cultivating a voter-friendly environment, proving a commitment to actively engaging students in their community.
’Canes Vote, the institution-wide effort to increase electoral engagement on campus is coordinated by the Butler Center for Service and Leadership. The initiative has led the University to a 15 percent increase in student voters from 2016. In addition to increased turnout rate, ’Canes Vote efforts to register student voters led to a 7 percent increase since 2016. Consequently, the University was awarded a Gold Seal by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, improving on its silver standard from 2018.
“I’m excited that as an institution we are moving voting rates and registration forward. It shows that we’ve made a huge difference—especially with students leading the efforts—in democratic engagement on campus,” said Andrew Wiemer, senior director of the Butler Center for Service and Leadership.
Contributing to the increasingly engaged campus community is the University’s own student-led Get Out The Vote initiative. The organization’s members focus on encouraging their peers to register to vote while also educating them about the voting process. Get Out The Vote’s efforts include on-campus events like voter registration drives and setting up information tables during election seasons.
Its upcoming campaign, titled “Why Midterms Matter To U,” will help students see the impacts that midterm elections have on their daily lives. In recognition of these efforts and more, the University was designated a “Voter-Friendly Campus” by the Campus Vote Project.
Learn more about the ’Canes Vote initiative and Get Out the Vote at miami.edu/vote.
