UCSB Leads in Nationwide Voter Registration Contest

Election Day is coming, and UC schools have emerged as being among the campuses with the most students registered to vote. This election season, the campus are competing as part of the Ultimate College Bowl . Launched in September, the Ultimate College Bowl is a partnership between MySpace and unbiased voter registration groups such as Declare Yourself, HeadCount, or Rock the Vote. This Beverly Hills-based national contest offers scholarships and free concerts from bands like Death Cab for Cutie and Colin Meloy of the band The Decemberists for the college that registers the most students to vote.

As of Friday, five UC campuses are in the top 10 for number of registrations so far, with UCSB in the lead, followed by UC Berkeley. The UCSB Campus Democrats have taken charge in encouraging students to vote. Led by Chrissy Elles, the UCSB Dems are registering as many students as possible, regardless of their political affiliation.

The Isla Vista area is highly responsive to making the vote, Elles said, as a result of the “unique density and layout,” in her words. “Isla Vista is a crucial area for Democratic candidates,” Elles explained. The Campus Democrats will be doing a registration walk every Saturday morning until the October 20 deadline. Elle called UCSB’s lead in the Ultimate College Bowl the “icing on the cake.”