If you are part of the many SF State students that commute here from out of town, then listen up.

DO NOT VOTE HERE!

If you’re not registered here and you vote with a provisional ballot on campus, your vote will not make it back to your county. It will not be mailed, faxed, or electronically sent to your regular polling place. It will be tossed over a poll worker’s shoulder and into the shredder.

“But it’s my vote!” you may be thinking.

We empathize.

Lost votes are unacceptable and poll workers should be trained to advise voters against it.

It’s especially unfortunate when it happens at a university because the lost votes make young people appear apathetic about politics. For example, in 2004, 47 percent of 18-24 year-olds in the U.S. showed up to the polls, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Now it’s 2008 and national and local campaigns have expanded the way they communicate with young people—mainly through educational information online. They’re hoping for a higher turnout, and it looks like it’s working. An army of voter advocates on campus such as the Associated Students, Dept. of Elections, College Democrats and College Republicans have registered hundreds of voters this semester.

So, if voters are willing to research who and what to vote for, then they should expect that the government show them how to do it properly on Election Day.

But don’t blame the government completely. If you think you’re informed enough to cast a vote, prove it. Make sure you do it right.