This Tuesday, Virginia voters will have the opportunity to vote on three constitutional amendments. Ballots will include three questions that specify which article of the Constitution is up for change and the change that is being considered. The questions are listed and explained below.

Question 1: “Shall Section 6 of Article X of the Constitution of Virginia be amended to authorize legislation that will permit localities to establish their own income or financial worth limitations for purposes of granting property tax relief for homeowners not less than 65 years of age or permanently and totally disabled?”

Explanation: Currently the law requires that there be “an extraordinary tax burden” on homeowners who are at least 65-years-old or permanently and totally disabled. The change would take out the “extraordinary tax burden” requirement and allow localities to independently determine income or financial worth minimums for homeowners who are at least 65-years-old or permanently and totally disabled to be exempt from taxes.

Question 2: Shall the Constitution be amended to require the General Assembly to provide a real property tax exemption for the principal residence of a veteran, or his or her surviving spouse, if the veteran has a 100 percent service-connected, permanent, and total disability?

Explanation: If passed, the amendment will compel the Virginia General Assembly to exempt veterans who are permanently and totally disabled due to a service related injury from paying local real estate taxes on their primary home. This exemption would also apply the surviving spouse as long as they keep the residence as their primary home and do not remarry.

Question 3: Shall Section 8 of Article X of the Constitution of Virginia be amended to increase the permissible size of the Revenue Stabilization Fund (also known as the “rainy day fund”) from 10 percent to 15 percent of the Commonwealth’s average annual tax revenues derived from income and retail sales taxes for the preceding three fiscal years?

Explanation: The Commonwealth has a rainy day fund. It decides what the amount of that fund should be by averaging the previous three years’ income and retail sales taxes collected by the state. Currently, the fund is limited to 10 percent of that average and the amendment would increase it to 15 percent.

Vote Vans, an initiative started by Zach Golden and Claire Forman in 2007, is coming back again this year to help students make voting easier. It will be shuttling students from Mason to W.T Woodson High School where they will be able to vote.

Vote Vans will have a tent set up in the grassy area between Enterprise Hall and Science and Tech II and also at the Sandy Creek Circle to educate students about the voting process as well as this year’s candidates running for office.

“Our main goal is to transport students who don’t have cars but are passionate about voting,” says Melissa Jackson, organizer for Vote Vans.

Vote Vans will also be handing out electronic surveys via iPod touches to students in hopes to raise awareness about higher education issues and budget cuts. This information will then be used to go to Richmond on Lobbying Day to lobby on the student’s behalf.

Come out and show your support and vote for your favorite candidate!

By Aisha Jamil

It’s that time of the year again and Mason Votes is back!

Election Day is coming up in less than a month and Mason Votes is prepared to have students pumped up and ready to vote!

College-aged students are one of the most apathetic age groups when it comes to voting, but the last presidential election definitely turned over a new leaf. It got the masses excited. It got us excited. It got everyone excited!

So, in order to keep that excitement going, Mason Votes is coming back this year to raise voter awareness for Mason’s student population.

Come visit us at the Johnson Center -Tuesday, Oct. 26, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to have some free snacks (homemade brownies and such) learn about voter registration and become our fan on Facebook. Keep checking our website for more articles, news and updates about the coming mid-term elections in the next few weeks cause it’s bound to become a tough battle!

- Aisha Jamil

LT. GOVERNOR RACE
Bill Bolling (R) – 56.41% (winner)
Jody Wagner (D) – 43.51%

ATTORNEY GENERAL RACE
Ken Cuccinelli (R) – 57.52% (winner)
Steve Shannon (D) – 42.39%

13th DISTRICT HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE (Prince William Campus) – 100% of Precincts Reporting
John Bell (D) – 38.6%
Bob Marshall (R) – 61.3% (winner)

37th DISTRICT HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE (Fairfax Campus) – 100% of Precincts Reporting
David Bulova (D) – 67.56% (winner)
Christopher DeCarlo (I) – 24.74%

40th DISTRICT HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE – 100% of Precincts Reporting
Susan Conrad (D)* – 36.81%
Timothy Hugo (R) – 63.06% (winner)

47th DISTRICT HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE (Arlington Campus) – 100% of Precincts Reporting
Eric Brescia (R) – 31.87%
Patrick Hope (D) – 63.89% (winner)
Josh Ruebner (I) – 4.11%

*George Mason University graduate student

For the second year in a row, the Mason Votes Vans will ferry students from George Mason University’s Fairfax campus to their designated polling place, Woodson High School in Fairfax.

The Mason Votes Vans will run from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and will pick students up from the front of Sandy Creek Parking Deck, where the shuttles and Gunston Go Bus usually run.

Staffed by drivers from Student Government, the two seven-passenger mini-vans will alternate trips, with one heading to the polls while the other is departing, with the goal of ensuring that no student has to wait more than a few minutes for a ride.

Students at the stop will be provided with snacks, drinks and campaign literature from all candidates.

The program provided 400 students with transportation to the polls in 2008, though SG officials acknowledge that fewer people are likely to participate this time around.

“2008 was a historic election so it was easier to promote,” said Student Senate Speaker Mhehvish Khan. “This year, we’ll be working even harder to do that.”

Pete Danjczek, chief of staff to SG President Devraj Dasgupta, said he thought there would be “far fewer riders in 2009, but qualified that SG would try to make up for the deficit with “the passion of last year.”

Danjczek said that members of the fraternity Pi Kappa Alpha would be dispersed throughout the Johnson Center and near Southside letting people know about the shuttle service and distributing campaign literature.

“We want students to understand why they’re voting,” Danjczek emphasized. “We’re handing out an unbiased page of platforms from the candidates’ websites, using their wording. We’re not doing much interpretation.”

The College Democrats and College Republicans are readying for Virginia’s November 3 election with a spate of campaign events and public outreach.

Pakiza Nasher, president of the College Democrats called the election “the most important thing on our agenda for the 2009-2010 school year.”

Both clubs plan to pursue a policy of aggressive visibility at George Mason, with both regularly canvassing and the College Republicans operating a kiosk in the Johnson Center from 11:00a.m. to 3:00p.m. on Election Day reminding people to vote.

“We want to have a massive presence on campus,” said Amanda Johnson, chairman of the George Mason University College Republicans. “It was so sad on election day ’08, because there were all these Obama people all over school, and no one for McCain. This time, I want to make sure we do that.”

For both sides, the stakes are high. “The results of the election and the voter turn out will reflect whether the College Democrats reached out to the Mason community and put forth all our effort for the canvassing,” Nasher said.

“The current political climate has definitely caused people to be more assertive,” Johnson said. “The Republicans fell asleep during the ’08 campaign and were complacent. The Democrats kind of attacked and really showed us that they were coming with their teeth bared. The Republicans weren’t ready. There’s increased awareness that both sides have to be ready to defend their beliefs. People, now more than ever, are voicing that.”

College Democrats and College Republicans have also hosted and plan to host guest speakers, among them state candidates for office such as Republican attorney general contender Ken Cuccinelli, who spoke at the College Republicans meeting last Tuesday night.

George Mason University has announced that it will be hosting two political debates this fall. The first will occur Sept. 24 between lieutenant gubernatorial candidates Bill Bolling and Jodi Wagner and will be followed by an Oct. 7 debate between attorney general candidates Ken Cuccinelli and Steve Shannon. The debates are being sponsored by Mason, Prince William Committee of 100, Prince William Regional Chamber of Commerce, Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce and Northern Virginia Community College.

The Sept. 24 debate will be moderated by WJLA‘s Bruce DePuyt and will begin at 8 p.m. The Attorney General debate will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be moderated by Scott Thuman, also of WJLA. Both events will be held at the Prince William Campus‘ Verizon Auditorium.

Mason’s chapters of the College Republicans and College Democrats have been invited to provide questions for the candidates.

Absentee Ballot Application

Absentee Ballot Application (due to a disability)- This must be filed out annually.

Also, here is some information pertaining to student voters.