The Tulane Undergraduate Assembly, along with the Center for Public Service and the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life, hosted an event called “Flock to the Polls” to encourage voter registration on Monday, Oct. 21.  

New Orleans Pelicans players Antonio Reeves, Jordan Hawkins and four Pelicans cheerleaders visited the LBC as part of the event.  

Kaitlyn Poe, the assistant director of student governance at the LBC, was the driving force behind the event.  

“It was incredible to see the Tulane community engage with voter education in a fun, memorable, and accessible way,” she said in an email to The Hullabaloo. 

“[S]tudents having the opportunity to meet and take photos with Pelicans players Antonio Reeves and Jordan Hawkins, it was a unique way to promote education for a critical election year. We had many students take the ‘Pledge TU Vote’ and put stars on map indicating the state [they’re] voting in,” she said. 

This event comes after recent laws shut down all student voter registration efforts. The laws require anyone who wants to organize a voter registration fair to sign up with the secretary of state, under threat of harsh consequences, including jail time. 

“This event in particular originally aimed to get students registered, however, after many conversations with the Tulane team on what was possible and diving deeper into the interpretation of the new law, the event shifted to a voter education fair,” Poe said.  

Regarding the turnout, the event received 215 students, some from the neighboring Loyola University. 

“Moving forward, I believe we’ve found a way to navigate this more successfully with a greater understanding of the law and the impacts on Tulane’s campus.” 

TUA and the other groups involved in the event do not think this is the end of civic engagement at Tulane. “[M]any events and initiatives are in the works, including navigating the aftermath of the election, getting students engaged civically outside of the presidential election, and having conversations around difference.”