Webster University Recognized in National Study for Increasing Student Voter Turnout

Webster University earned a silver seal from the “ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge” for having more than 70% of its students vote in the 2020 elections. This is the second national recognition Webster University has received this year for its work in getting students civically engaged.

“We are pleased to again be recognized for the work accomplished through the WebsterVOTES program,” said Jennifer Stewart, director of Student Engagement. “One of the best way students can become global citizens is to participate in their communities, and the easiest way to do that is to follow local elections and cast a ballot.”

Webster was recognized in a report released today by the Institute for Democracy & Higher Education (IDHE), creators of the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement, or NSLVE. IDHE is located at Tufts University’s Tisch College of Civic Life. NSLVE identified Webster has having 68% of its students cast a ballot in 2020, up nearly 10% from the 2016 election. Overall, 83.5% of Webster’s students registered to vote, and 81.4% of the registered students voted.

Nationwide, the study’s authors report a record-breaking set of findings. On campuses across the country, students built on the momentum swing of 2018 and voted at high rates in the 2020 election, with voter turnout jumping to 66% in last year’s presidential election. The 14% increase, from 52% turnout in the 2016 election, outpaces that of all Americans, which jumped 6% from 61% to 67%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

“That students, often younger and first-time voters, turned out at rates commensurate with the general public is nothing short of stunning,” said IDHE Director Nancy Thomas. “We attribute this high level of participation to many factors, including student activism on issues such as racial injustice, global climate change and voter suppression, as well as increased efforts by educators to reach students and connect them to the issues and to voting resources.”

The NSLVE is the nation’s largest study of college and university student voting. Institutions must opt-in to the study, and at this time, nearly 1,200 campuses of all types—community colleges, research universities, minority-serving and women’s colleges, state universities, and private institutions—participate. The dataset reflects all 50 states and the District of Columbia and includes 49 of the nation’s 50 flagship schools. IDHE uses de-identified student records to ensure student privacy. The 2020 dataset is robust with 8,880,700 voting-eligible students representing 1,051 colleges and universities.

In March, Webster University was nationally recognized as a Voter Friendly Campus for its efforts to encourage more students to vote by VoterFriendlyCampus.org, a nonpartisan organization created by the Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project (CVP) and NASPA –

Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. Webster received a similar recognition in 2018.