For each student who registers to vote this week, ASU is one step closer to hearing the Sun Devil fight song performed by one of its rival schools.
But a new Arizona law will make it tougher for out-of-state students to register in this year's voter registration competition.
The government relations department of the Undergraduate Student Government is holding competitions this week with other Arizona universities, as well as between residence hall floors and Greek Life.
Ed Hermes, USG's government relations director, said he hopes for a large student turnout but thinks the restrictions imposed by Proposition 200 will take a toll on student voting.
The passage of Proposition 200 in the last Arizona election changed the law to require anyone registering to vote in Arizona to provide an Arizona driver's license, a copy of a passport, a copy of a birth certificate, naturalization papers or a tribal identification card. In the past, one could register to vote as long as they had a Social Security number.
"Most out-of-state students who come and reside in Arizona don't have Arizona driver's licenses and most also don't have their birth certificate, passports or [tribal] identification cards laying around, so that makes it very difficult to register students to vote," Hermes said.
Hermes said he encourages out-of-state students to stop by the Motor Vehicles Division near McKellips Road and McClintock Drive to pick up an Arizona driver's license so they can register to vote in Tempe in time for the Tempe City Council elections next semester.
Political science freshman Bobby Ochoa, a volunteer for the registration drive, said the government relations department is in the process of organizing a carpool to the MVD on Friday mornings.
Hermes said he encourages any student in need of transportation to the MVD to contact USG, and he will set them up with a ride.
But despite registration difficulties, Hermes said he hopes ASU registers more students than UA and NAU in the statewide competition.
While the schools haven't yet agreed on a prize for the winning campus, Hermes said one reward may be making the losing schools' student government presidents sing the winning school's fight song.
Besides humiliating UA, Hermes said he thinks it is important for students to register to vote as a first step in becoming civically engaged and flexing their political muscles.
"In the past, students voting hasn't been the highest of efficacies, and that allows our elected officials to ignore students and student issues to a certain extent," Hermes said.
"We're registering students to vote to really get the attention of our elected officials this year, to show that students are going to vote, to show that students do care and to show that if you enact policies that go against student concerns, you will be voted out of office," he added.
The competition between ASU residence hall floors will be held in every complex. The floors with the highest percentage of registered voters win a pizza party.
In the Greek Life competition, the fraternity and sorority with the highest percentage of registered members will receive ASASU and media recognition and a "Certificate of Civic Excellence."
The voter registration table will be on the mall Monday through Thursday. The residence hall and Greek Life competitions will be Monday through Friday.
Reach the reporter at jourdan.rassas@asu.edu.
