November 6, 2012 at 2:38 PM

Surges of voters at the HUB-Robeson Center this morning, and again at noon, have resulted in more than 1,300 votes being cast at the popular student polling station, Judge of Elections for Precinct 44 Maeve McCullough said.

McCullough (sophomore-integrated arts) said a majority of student voters have already appeared to place their votes, and that she expects more than 2,500 votes to be cast at the HUB today at the current rate.

The entrance to Alumni hall was packed with campaigners and student organization groups encouraging voting. Among them was Democratic State Representative candidate Christopher Lee, running for the 171st district.

Lee commented on the strong showing of students at the HUB voting location this year, and emphasized the strong presence students have in local elections.

“Students are especially important in the 171st district,” Lee said.

Students, however, are often split in how important they regard their vote to be.

Liz Phinn (sophomore-psychology) agreed with Lee in terms of the value of student votes, and said that the 15 minute line to vote was well worth the wait.

“It’s really important, and every vote counts. It’s our civic duty,” Phinn said.

This sentiment however, was not shared by Samantha Waters (sophomore-business) who, despite being swayed by the social issues that influenced her vote, said she believes that one vote is not very consequential.

Annie Lee (freshman-premed) took both sides into consideration.

“Maybe my one vote wasn’t all that important, but I still believe that it is important for every American to fulfill their civic duty,” Lee said.

She also noted the importance of economic issues, especially from a student perspective.

“It’s important for us to pay attention to candidates’ policies concerning jobs and the economy as we will all soon be part of the workforce,” Lee said.