Mark Braboy
News Editor
With the Special Mayoral Election heading towards the finish line, candidates Tony Yarber and Chokwe Antar Lumumba are in a neck to neck battle to become the next Mayor of the City of Jackson due to a runoff. Much has been done to get students registered and actively participating in city politics, but it seems that all these efforts have been in vain.
According to the Jackson City Clerk’s office, statistics shows that only a dismal 1.5 percent of 2043 people registered to vote at the Jackson State precinct participated in this year’s Special Election. This is a disappointing statistic compared to the amount of people who participated in this year’s Student Government Association election, which tallied to over 1,000 students.
This seems to be an ongoing trend evident in last year’s election where 3.8 percent out of 2271 registered voters voted in the precinct. Keep in mind that our Precinct #49 is the second biggest district in Jackson, Miss. The number of people who voted for the winning SGA president eclipses the number of people who participated in these city elections.
This is a disturbing statistic to me because it shows that students care more about elections that are popularity contests than issues that directly affect the city and the university. That is not to disregard the significance of the SGA election because it is something that directly affects the student body.
Many can argue the Special Election does not or should not matter to students who are not from Jackson or Mississippi. However, this election can have a drastic affect on what happens to the city and in turn can affect Jackson State. City politics and the effects it can have on universities go hand in hand whether it’s with the students as citizens and the university as a whole.
During the late Chokwe Lumumba’s term in office, he and President Carolyn Meyers established a bountiful relationship between JSU and the City of Jackson. In fact, when Tiger Plaza was established, Jackson State police officers and the Jackson Police Department collaborated to secure the new dormitory.
It should be noted that 3,934 students who attend JSU are from Jackson and more than likely voted off campus. None of these arguments however can legitimately answer why those who are registered at Jackson State are not voting because the problem lies within the low number of voters. For as many voter registration drives that happen on campus each year, you would think there would be more active voters.
Princess Williams, a senior political science major from Jackson, Miss. and a volunteer for the election, agrees that the city elections affect students just as much as citizens.
“It is important that we vote and participate in the political process. Our vote is our voice in our city government. Our ancestors died so that we could enjoy this right as African Americans,” said Williams.
With the evident assault on voter rights taking place, it is important that students take the full advantage of their rights while they still can. Like the saying goes, you never know what you have until it is gone.
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