Elon University is committed to promoting civic engagement and participation in the democratic process, a mission that becomes all the more important during election years. As written in the university’s mission statement, “We integrate learning across the disciplines and put knowledge into practice, thus preparing students to be global citizens and informed leaders motivated by concern for the common good.”

Election 2024 markThe university promotes learning, understanding and constructive discussion through its Active Citizen series and this year was named a “Voter Friendly Campus” by Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project and NASPA for a second time. In 2022, the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge named Elon as one of the top institutions working to increase nonpartisan student voter registration, education and turnout and this year ALL IN recognized Elon for the quality of its nonpartisan democratic engagement action plan. Entities such as the Elon University Political Engagement Work Group, the Elon University Election 2024 Planning Team and the Council on Civic Engagement are working diligently and collaboratively to promote civic engagement.

To foster participation in Election 2024, Elon is offering this online resource to help connect voters with the information they need to make important decisions on Election Day and to raise awareness about opportunities to learn, become engaged and participate in constructive dialogue.

Events

November Events

General Election
Tuesday, November 5

A continuous shuttle will run from the Center for the Arts to two local polling places from the hours of 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Election Day Space Holding
Tuesday, November 5, 8:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m., Numen Lumen Pavilion Sacred Space

The Sacred Space and McBride Gathering Space in the Numen Lumen Pavilion will be open for reflection, contemplation, or prayer on Election Day. All campus community members are invited to drop in, offer intentions and prayers for the outcome of the elections, and steady ourselves in the face of the unknown. Members of the Chaplain’s Team, the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life staff, and members of the Black Spiritual Support Group (BSSG) will be on-site to offer counsel, prayers, and a listening ear.

Active Citizen Series: Election Night Watch 
Tuesday, November 5, 8 p.m., Global Neighborhood Commons Great Hall

The Elon community is invited to watch history unfold as election results come in from across the nation.
Sponsored by the Kernodle Center for Civic Life, Elon Votes!, Student Government Association, Council on Civic Engagement, and Elon Political Engagement Work Group.

Hope for the Future: Public Art Project
Wednesday, November 6, 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., Haggard Avenue

Take time out to express your voice in a creative way.  Gather on Haggard Ave to draw, chalk, and write about an optimistic tomorrow.

Post-Election Processing Space
Wednesday, November 6, 8:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m., Numen Lumen Pavilion Sacred Space
The Sacred Space and McBride Gathering Space in the Numen Lumen Pavilion will be open for reflection, contemplation, or prayer on the day after Election Day. All campus community members are invited to drop in and take time to process the election results. Members of the Chaplain’s Team, the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life staff, and members of the Black Spiritual Support Group (BSSG) will be on-site to offer counsel, prayers, and a listening ear.

Active Citizen Series: After the Vote
Faculty panel sponsored by the Department of Political Science and Phoenix Policy Institute
Tuesday, November 12, 4:30 p.m., East Neighborhood Commons, Forum (102)

Learn about the ins and outs of the 2024 elections – from voting trends to controversial calls – with Elon experts. You’ll be able to ask questions about what the local, state, and national results mean for you, your friends and family, and our country.

Finding Unity Across Difference: A Democratic Dialogue
Thursday, November 14, 4:30-6 p.m., Lakeside Meeting Rooms 212-214

This post-election conversation is designed for our campus community to find connection and understanding across party lines. Whether you are thrilled or troubled by the outcome, this is opportunity to practice how active citizenship and engaged learning can help us bridge divides.

CAALM Election Decompression Group
Wednesdays until Inauguration Day, 12:00 p.m., Ward Octagon, Moseley Center 105A

Cultivating Awareness and Aptitude to Live Mindfully (CAALM) is a decompression group geared towards stresses that can be exacerbated during a presidential election. The goal of the drop-in structured group is to provide participants with tangible skills to improve mindfulness, well-being, and resilience as you navigate life. Note: this is a nonpartisan space and will not specifically focus on the political candidates or details of the election process. Sponsored by Counseling Services.

HEU 1706: Branching Out – Finding Community Wherever You Are
Spring Semester HealthEU Course (1 credit)
Half semester class offered during the first half of spring

Regardless of where you end up living after graduating from Elon, getting to know your community is essential to finding a sense of place, belonging, and connectedness. This course will provide you with ideas and best practices for entering a community. The course will use Alamance County as a backdrop, sharing information, opportunities, assets, and challenges about the community in our backyard. You will develop skills and strategies for being engaged and lifelong global citizens in whatever community you land in after your time at Elon. The class will meet on Wednesdays from 2:00-3:00pm, and also include two Friday afternoon community field trips. For additional information, contact the course instructors Kyle Anderson at kanderson52@elon.edu or Sara Beth Hardy at shardy5@elon.edu.

Previous Events

Student Issues Forum 
Thursday, September 5, 6 p.m., East Neighborhood Commons, Forum (102)

What are the issues at stake in the upcoming election that are most important to college students? How will you decide who to vote for in local, state and national races? Join other Elon students and campus experts for a non-contentious forum to learn more about what’s on the minds and hearts of Elon students during this election season. Sponsored by the Student Government Association and Elon News Network.

Active Citizen Series: North Carolina Trusted Elections Tour
Panel presentation sponsored by the Carter Center
Tuesday, September 10, 6:30 p.m., East Neighborhood Commons, Forum (102)

The North Carolina Network for Fair, Safe, & Secure Elections hosts the Trusted Elections Tour, a grassroots project initiated by The Carter Center. The tour consists of 27 town halls across the state to provide information on the electoral process, build trust in our voting system, and strengthen civil discourse. These 90-minute town halls will feature cybersecurity experts, election officials, and election law attorneys from both sides of the aisle. They will address public concerns about electronic voting machines and hacking, explain the secure process for collecting and counting votes, and advise on how challenges, recounts, and fraud allegations are dealt with through proper legal channels. Hosted at Elon by the Council on Civic Engagement.

Active Citizen Series: Presidential Debate Watch
Tuesday, September 10, 9 p.m., Moseley Center First Floor

Members of the Elon University community will gather to watch the Presidential Debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. The goal of this event is to help educate students about the policies and beliefs of the two presidential nominees. Sponsored by the Kernodle Center for Civic Life, Elon Votes!, Council on Civic Engagement, Elon Political Engagement Work Group, and Phoenix Policy Institute.

Active Citizen Series: Bridging Political Divides with Artificial Intelligence
Featuring Christopher Bail, Director of the Polarization Lab, Duke University
Wednesday, September 18, 7 p.m., McKinnon Hall F, Moseley Center

In an era of increasing social isolation, platforms like Facebook and Twitter are among the most important tools we have to understand each other. While social media acts as a mirror to decipher our place in society, it also functions like a prism that distorts our identities, empowers status-seeking extremists and renders moderates all but invisible. Wherever you stand on the spectrum of user behavior and political opinion, Christopher Bail offers fresh solutions to counter political tribalism from the bottom up and the top down. Bail is Professor of Sociology, Political Science and Public Policy at Duke University and the Founding Director of the Duke Polarization Lab. He is a Guggenheim Fellow and a Carnegie Fellow and is the author of Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing. Sponsored by the Council on Civic Engagement, Kernodle Center for Civic Life, Global Education Center, and Center for Writing Excellence.

Active Citizen Series: Deliberative Dialogue
Topic: Anxiety and Elections
Monday, September 23, 4:30 p.m., Lakeside 212
Advance Registration Required Here

With the 2024 election on the horizon, do you find your inner peace shaken by the stress of America’s election season? How do we set boundaries for our own mental health, as well as have meaningful conversations with others, when so much weight and importance is placed on the upcoming election? How do we create the kind of atmosphere that will help ourselves, our communities and our nation? A Deliberative Dialogue is an opportunity for students to gather and exchange diverse views and experiences to seek a shared understanding of a challenge facing our society and to search for common ground for action. Sponsored by the Kernodle Center for Civic Life.

ABSS Board of Education Candidate Forum
Moderated by Ann Bullock, Dean of the Dr. Jo Watts Williams School of Education, Elon University
Monday, September 30, 7 p.m., Paramount Theater, 128 E. Front St., Burlington

Local elections are important to the future of the community where we live, work, and learn. All eight candidates for the Alamance Burlington School System (ABSS) Board of Education have been invited to participate in a community-wide forum to let voters know where they stand on the issues that are most important to the county. Sponsored by Elon University, Impact Alamance, and Alamance Chamber of Commerce, with support from Elon News Network and the City of Burlington. Bus transportation from Elon University to the Paramount Theater will be provided – bus will depart at 6:30 p.m. from the Center for the Arts. Co-sponsored by Elon University, Impact Alamance, the Alamance Chamber of Commerce, Elon News Network, and the City of Burlington.

Visit www.alamancevotes.org to find responses to additional questions posed to each of the candidates running for office.

Alamance County Commissioner Candidate Forum
Moderated by Ryan Blackledge, Director of Governmental Affairs, Cone Health
Tuesday, October 1, 7 p.m., Paramount Theater, 128 E. Front St., Burlington

Local elections are important to the future of the community where we live, work, and learn. All six candidates for the Alamance County Board of Commissioners have been invited to participate in a community-wide forum to let voters know where they stand on the issues that are most important to the county. Sponsored by Elon University, Impact Alamance, and Alamance Chamber of Commerce, with support from Elon News Network and the City of Burlington. Bus transportation from Elon University to the Paramount Theater will be provided – bus will depart at 6:30 p.m. from the Center for the Arts. Co-sponsored by Elon University, Impact Alamance, the Alamance Chamber of Commerce, Elon News Network, and the City of Burlington.

Visit www.alamancevotes.org to find responses to additional questions posed to each of the candidates running for office.

Active Citizen Series: Vice Presidential Debate Watch
Tuesday, October 1, 9 p.m., Moseley Center First Floor

Members of the Elon University community will gather to watch this debate between Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota and Senator JD Vance of Ohio. The goal of this event is to help educate students about the policies and beliefs of the two vice-presidential nominees. Sponsored by the Kernodle Center for Civic Life, Elon Votes!, Student Governement Association, Council on Civic Engagement, and Elon Political Engagement Work Group.

Alumni Voices: Conversations with Political Insiders on the 2024 Election – Austin Moore ’22
Tuesday, October 1, 6:00-7:30 p.m., KOBC 101

Austin will speak on the topic of how grassroots organizing can shape your political career. She currently serves as the Deputy Field Director for Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s campaign. Previously, Austin served as a field organizer on Governor Maura Healey’s 2022 election campaign, as well as Advance Manager and Traveling Aide to Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. Sponsored by the Fund for Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, Department of Journalism, and Elections 2024 Committee.

Critical Issues, Critical Votes: Navigating the impact of the 2024 Election on ALANAM* Communities 
*African-American/Black, Latinx/Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native American, Alaskan Native, and Multiracial 
Wednesday, October 2, 5:30-7:00 p.m., McKinnon Hall, Moseley Center

Voting rights, healthcare disparities, economic inequality, and immigration policy—these are just some of the urgent issues at stake in the 2024 election. This panel will explore how the platforms of the two primary candidates may profoundly affect communities of color, focusing on both the broader implications and the specific impacts on vulnerable groups within these communities, such as women, LGBTQ+ individuals and immigrants.

One-Stop Early Voting
Thursday, October 17 – Saturday, November 2, South Gym

Individuals registered to vote in Alamance County can cast their ballots at one of five One-Stop Early Voting Sites this fall from October 17-November 2. Students and Alamance County residents can also register to vote and cast their ballots during a single visit. One of those sites is located at the Elon University South Gym. Specific hours can be found on the Alamance County Board of Elections website.

Active Citizen Series: Tracking Money in U.S. Politics and its Effect on Elections and Public Policy
Featuring Hilary Braseth, Executive Director of Open Secrets
Thursday, October 17, 4:30 p.m., East Neighborhood Commons, Forum (Room 102)

Organizations and individuals spend billions of dollars on lobbying and election-related activities and voters and citizens are often unaware of who is funding these efforts and what influence the expenditures may have on elections or public policy decisions.  Open Secrets is a nonpartisan independent nonprofit organization dedicated to researching and publishing information about the flow of money in politics to strengthen citizen awareness and our democracy. The executive director of Open Secrets, Hilary Braseth, will sit down with Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Policy Carrie Eaves for a conversation about the effect of money in U.S. politics. Sponsored by the Council on Civic Engagement through a grant from the Election 2024 Working Group.

Alumni Voices: Conversations with Political Insiders on the 2024 Election
Featuring Maria Ramirez Uribe ’20
Tuesday, October 22, 6:00 p.m., Schar Hall, Turner Theater

Maria Ramirez Uribe ’20, is an immigration reporter and fact-checker at PolitiFact. Previously she served as a Report for America corps member, working as a race and equity reporter in Charlotte, North Carolina, for WFAE, an NPR member station, and La Noticia, a Spanish-language paper. Before this, Maria worked as a freelance researcher for CNN’s international desk. This second event in the alumni voices series will focus on “Fighting Election Disinformation: On the Frontline of Fact Checking Lies.” A moderated discussion with professors Israel Balderas and Jill Auditori will include the opportunity for questions from the audience. Sponsored by the Fund for Excellence in the Arts & Sciences, Department of Journalism, and the Election 2024 Working Group.

Big Political Data in our Local Community: Gerrymandering, Social Media, and the Election
Featuring Maggie Macdonald ‘15, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Kentucky
Wednesday, October 23, 4:30 p.m., Lakeside Meeting Rooms, 214

Data Nexus will host Maggie Macdonald as part of the Power of Women in Data Speaker Series. Macdonald will be speaking on data related to gerrymandering and social media, specifically around the current election and North Carolina data.

Care in Times of Conflict
Featuring Rev. Dr. Kirstin Boswell, Rev. Julie Tonnesen, Imam Shane Atkinson, and Rabbi Dr. Maor Greene
Tuesday, October 29, 4:00-5:00 p.m., Numen Lumen Pavilion Sacred Space

Are you concerned about conversations across lines of difference? Hear from our multifaith team of chaplains  about how we navigate charged conversations around the upcoming election, ongoing conflicts around the world, the nuances of gratitude and grief, processing complex emotions, and how teachings from our traditions can help promote well-being, self-care, and care for others.

Asia in the U.S. Elections
Featuring Eileen Chow, Chinese Studies, Duke University; Jason Kirk, Political Science; Mark Kurt, Economics; and Yidi Wu, History
Tuesday, October 29, 6:00-7:30 p.m., McBride Gathering Space, Numen Lumen Pavilion

How will the elections impact U.S.-China relations? What do Asians and Asian Americans think about the elections? Come to find out from the panel discussion on the 2024 U.S. elections in relation to India, Japan, China and Taiwan. Sponsored by Elon Votes!, International and Global Studies, and Asian Studies. 

The State of Blackness: Political Action
Featuring Jessica Carew, Political Science and Policy Studies; Raj Ghoshal, Sociology; Christina Stafford, Student; and Carlos Grooms, Activist, Assistant Professor and Librarian, NC A&T State University
Wednesday, October 30, 5:30 p.m., Lindner 206

This year, the theme for the African and African American Studies Minor centers on political action—past, present, and future—with the goal of exploring what political action has looked like and could look like for Black people in the U.S., across generations. Gain valuable insights that shed light on the ongoing efforts toward equality and justice and engage in a conversation that promises to inspire meaningful dialogue and action toward a more equitable future. Sponsored by the African and African American Studies Minor.

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