Apathetic youth in the 2010 Maine state elections

ORONO, ME- Year after year, youth voter apathy is a growing concern for government, politicians, and active citizens alike. As the Maine gubernatorial race is close, LePage ahead of Sen. Mitchell by less than 5 percentage points, youth participation could become critical in this year's election results. Sen. Mitchell believes that “whoever wins this race will win by only a handful of votes” and the participation of each young voter is essential in electing the best candidate for Maine.

According to the 2009 American Community Survey, citizens between the ages of 18 and 29 comprise 15 percent of Maine’s population. In the last gubernatorial election of 2006, the Youth Democrats of America determined that 21 percent of this age group voted. If young voter participation does not increase from the 2006 election, 14.5 percent, or over 152 thousand, of the state’s population who are given a chance to speak will remain unheard, and possibly unrepresented in the Maine state government for the next four years.

An important question to address is why should young voters care to be informed, and help decide the fate of Maine politics? The answer is simple. Politics dictate our lives. Who we vote for; whether it's the president of the United States, or a district representative; determines who can have health insurance, how much money is given to our public schools, how much college students pay for tuition, who can get married, what kinds of jobs are created, as well as many other issues.

Senator Mitchell plans on addressing several issues that will affect young adults across the state if elected governor.

Dan Demeritt, press secretary for the LePage campaign, explains an initiative of the candidate about higher education.

Each candidate has issues on their platform that will affect a wide variety of citizens, and young voters must become more involved to ensure the election of a governor who will benefit our state's future.

To find out more about each candidates platform visit the websites of Sen. Mitchell, Mayor LePage, Cutler, Moody, and Scott.

To learn about the gubernatorial political forum, view Emma Thieme's story, and to learn about how social networking has affected the gubernatorial race, view Bryan Roche's story.

Maine Students and the State Elections: Who's doing what?

ORONO- In less than two weeks, citizens across the state of Maine will head to the polls to cast their votes. At the University of Maine, there is a wide spectrum of student involvement in this years election from student groups facilitating political talks, to actually running for legislature.

Zachary Jackman, a senior at the University, is running as a Republican against Rep. Emily Cain for Orono’s District 19 seat in the House of Representatives. Jackman feels as though there is an overall lack of student involvement with the state elections and is concerned that this will reflect in the turnouts on election day.

UMaine UVote, an organization on campus, realizes this problem, and works hard to increase student involvement on campus. This group hosts events such as the Rock the Vote concert, and public forums to inform young voters in particular, and to get them interested in elections.

Nathan Wildes, Student Coordinator of UVote, plays a large role in making sure students have the opportunity to become active citizens. "Most recently, we organized the debate between Rep. Emily Cain and Zach Jackman for the District 19 House seat. We also organize and promote Election Day every year, which includes an 'Early Vote Day.'"

Ben Goodman, president of the College Democrats, clarifies the role that both UMaine UVote and the College Democrats play in promoting involvement in the election to students on campus.

The College Democrats focus on organizing students to hold events and forums that educate fellow students and help Democrats win elections. This year, they are proudly supporting Democrat Sen. Libby Mitchell in the Gubernatorial race by tabling around the University of Maine, and recruiting volunteers to help local efforts supporting Democrats up and down the ballot. "We have worked to educate students on the clear differences between Senator Mitchell and Mayor LePage, and will continue to do so through November 2nd," explains Goodman.

Supporting Sen. Mitchell’s political opposition are the UMaine College Republicans who find commonality in their passion of promoting conservative values. Members of the College Republicans have been volunteering for the campaigns of Mayor Paul LePage and Jason Levesque by phone banking and literature dropping. Vice Chair, Joseph Grace, shares great optimism of the engagement of the College Republican members.

With little time left, organizations like UMaine UVote will be working hard to spread the enthusiasm across campus shown by these politically active groups and individuals to those without desire to participate in the 2010 state elections.

Lookup more information pertaining the 2010 Maine State Elections, and how to become involved here!

Fall Break from Eliot to Caribou!

Doug's Tech. Lecture 10/14/10

Where's a good place to get news?

Jesse Groening, a 5th year undergrad at the University of Maine shares some great outlets to get news. Watch here to get some great tips!

UMaine is READY for fall break!

Fall break at the University of Maine is only hours away. I went out to the campus sidewalks on this drizzly day to find out what students have planned.

Hmmm.... Fall Break....

My fall break just started (no classes on Fridays for me)!! I'll be going to Caribou with my boyfriend to visit his nana. I'm about to head out on the sidewalks of UMaine to see what other students are planning on doing over fall break. Video to come VERY soon.

5 ways to BE and SAVE green!

1. Use fluorescent light bulbs

Fluorescent light bulbs last 5 years longer and use 47 watts less energy than incandescent light bulbs. With fluorescent light bulbs, you can cut down on your electric bill, and buy light bulbs less often. This means less waste in landfills, and less greenhouse gas emissions!

2. Ride a bike, walk, or carpool around town

Not only will you save money and stay in shape, by riding your bike or walking, you can also cut back on air pollution and gas consumption you would otherwise contribute to by driving your car. If it's too cold to walk or bike, try to find someone going in the same direction as you and car pool. Even better, by taking the bat bus (free for UMaine students) you pay nothing, and contribute no additional pollution to our air!

3. Take cooler showers

It's better for your skin, wallet and environment. Hot water can cause dry itchy skin, especially in the cold Maine weather. By taking cooler showers, you save on your energy consumption, electricity bill, AND skin health.

4. Drink tap water

Not only does the production of bottled water negatively impact our environment, it also leads to plastic waste that will later impact our earth. If you don't like the taste of tap water, buy a filter, and save money in the long run... it quickly pays itself off.

5. Think before you buy

Before you buy a brand new product, check out other options first! Maybe there's a gently used bike for a good price on Craigslist... You might be able to rent your biology text book rather than buy a new one... perhaps theres a cute pair of winter boots at a local thrift store. By consuming used goods, you can cut down on materials going into landfills, and save a significant amount of cash!

To learn more about what others are doing to be green, why you should be green, and how you should be green, visit got2begreen.com