Have you made up your mind yet?

Election results will prove if voting campaigns paid off

By COURTNEY ROQUE

Save our zoo. Four more years. Rock the vote. Vote or die!

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you have likely received a hefty dose of political messages this election year.

From musicians, to celebrities, to actors, to politicians, to actors who are politicians—they all want young people to vote tomorrow.

For decades, voters ages 18-24 have had the lowest turnout of all the voter age groups.

Only 31 percent of registered voters ages 18-20 voted in the 1996 presidential election, according to a Federal Election Commission report. And 33 percent of ages 21-24 voted in that election.

The slogan “Vote or Die!” made popular by rap mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, was part of a collective effort to sway young people to vote through music.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger uses catchphrases such as “I’ll be back,” and other “Terminator” references, perhaps to relate to the generation of voters who were raised on pop-culture.

And this is the message on Rock the Vote’s Web site: “The polls predict a dead heat; what they can’t predict is you. The election is in your hands.”

Only time will tell if those efforts to reach out to young voters will be enough to send the college-age portion of Fresno County’s 352,197 registered voters toward the polls.

All voters, including many who attend Fresno State, will have the chance to cast their votes regarding a number of highly publicized local and national issues in the general election.

In addition to voting for the next president of the United States, Fresno-area voters will choose who will fill several local offices, including seats on school boards and city councils. They will decide the fate of local measures, such as Measure Z, the “Save Our Zoo” proposal, and such state propositions as Proposition 71, which regards stem cell research.

The 375 polling places throughout Fresno County will open on Election Day at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

To learn more about measures and propositions or view election night results, visit the Fresno County Clerk’s website at http://www.co.fresno.ca.us /2850/index.html. For an overview of election issues, voting tips and a comparison of the presidential candidates, visit www.rockthevote.com. To find your polling place, visit www.mypollingplace.com.