For the first time, students at Mississippi State University will be able to cast their votes in Homecoming elections by means of online voting today from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
Thomas Sellers, student association president, said online voting will provide convenience and availability to all students.
“In regards to the old way of voting, if you were not on campus on election day, you did not get to vote,” he said. “There was no type of absentee voting or process to model after an absentee vote because MSU was one of the last schools in the SEC to make the transition to online voting.”
Sellers said he believes the new voting process is beneficial to the university.
Sellers said the shift to online voting was a huge change for future elections at MSU.
“Last spring, the Senate worked hard to develop the idea and the concept of online voting and how it should operate,” he said.
Sellers said the proposal was passed unanimously among the senate, and Information Technology Services worked to make it into a reality.
“We worked on it all summer and tested it,” he said. “By the use of online voting with the Senate elections earlier this semester, we had the largest voting turnout that we’ve ever had.”
Sellers also said with a change in voting comes the change in campaigning.
“With online voting, there can be no organized polling location, period,” he said. “Candidates cannot herd around computers to influence the voter.”
Shelby Balius, sophomore accounting major and SA director of academic affairs, said online voting is an excellent step for the future of MSU.
“It gives students a better chance at having their voices heard,” she said. “You don’t necessarily have to be on campus to participate in the election.”
Ashley Chism, freshman finance major, said online voting will make it easier for students to have a say in what goes on in the university.
“I think it is important because many of us have strong opinions about things, and if we don’t vote, we can’t really complain about what is going on,” she said.