Time warp to October 31, 2002. I remember excitedly watching Lieutenant Gubernatorial candidate Barbara Lawton speak to a medium-sized group of engaged students. Glancing around the Davies Theater, I recall wishing that the auditorium would have been filled to capacity, so a substantial extent of our student body could have heard Lawton's message.

As our future Lieutenant Governor, who would be elected less than one week later, Lawton told us how she expected each and every one of us to vote in the upcoming General Election that following Tuesday. As an Independent voter, I hadn't been particularly enamored by many of Wisconsin's recent Democratic candidates (with the exception of Kathleen Falk), but what Barbara Lawton was saying really struck a chord with me. She reminded us, as students, of our civic responsibility, while simultaneously providing us with honest, straightforward answers regarding her political platform and goals for the state. That was quite a refreshing change from all the older people who simply sneer at us, "Go vote, you slackers!" without uttering anything of substance.

Now the winter primaries are approaching us. These elections will be held on February 17, enabling Wisconsinites to have a say in which Democratic presidential contender will challenge George W. Bush in November. On that same day, voters will be eliminating two of twelve current candidates who are battling for seats on the Eau Claire City Council. The remaining ten candidates will then compete for five City Council seats in April.

As vice-president of the UW-Eau Claire College Independents, I intend to do my part to help my organization increase civic activism on our campus. Over the next few weeks, we will be actively pushing for students to register to vote, while providing information on the candidates' positions and backgrounds. While there is no doubt that it is every citizen's responsibility to vote, firmly grasping candidates' positions enhances the civic process. Without it, elections become a lot less meaningful, and often times, superficial.

On a personal note, I would like to encourage students to check out two of the candidates in particular: Brandon Buchanan and Darrin Wurz, both of whom are fellow students here at UWEC. Wurz and Buchanan are each running with a goal to forge productive relationships between college-age voters and the rest of the off-campus community in Eau Claire. By balancing the needs and concerns of the student population as well as non-student voters, Buchanan and Wurz will hopefully inspire our generation of Eau Claire students to participate in local politics. But they can only do that if we vote them into office.

As documented in the January 21 edition of The Leader-Telegram, both Buchanan and Wurz believe that Eau Claire residents should have a say in the decision of whether our city would switch to a mayoral form of government (Eau Claire currently operates under a city manager). If elected to City Council, they have pledged to represent the will of the people in making such a decision. Since middle-aged voters frequently complain about the lack of participation from younger citizens, I propose that we take them up on that challenge. What better way to start than by going to the polls on February 17 and casting our ballots for Wurz and Buchanan, who offer innovative platforms to take our community in a new direction.

Finally, College Independents is pleased to welcome Attila Nemecz to our campus. Attila works as a full time organizer for the New Voters Project, a grassroots movement to increase voter turnout among young people. Their website can be located at: http://www.newvotersproject.org

Nemecz will help the campus prove to Eau Claire residents that the students are engaged members of the community that can't be ignored. The goal is to energize a record number of young voters in time for the 2004 General Election, as well as the primary elections this Spring. Anyone who wants to participate in this effort should email him at: anemecz@newvotersproject.org. A kickoff meeting for the New Voters Project will be held on Thursday, February 12th, at 7:00pm in the Potawotami Room in Davies Center.

So as you head to the ballot box in two weeks to pull the lever for Howard Dean, John Kerry, Dennis Kucinich, John Edwards, or Wesley Clark or another, I hope you will have also researched your candidates for City Council--and consider pulling the lever for Brandon Buchanan and Darrin Wurz too. Buchanan and Wurz will be holding a rally at the campus mall on the Monday before the election (Feb. 16) at 12 Noon. Everyone who can attend should come ask questions and participate in the rally!

I look forward to seeing all of you at the voting booths on Tuesday, February 17.