Ruben Cervantes, an Hidalgo County voter registration specialist, shows the application for the deputy voter registrar certification during the Vaquero Voter Deputy training held last Tuesday on the Edinburg campus. The event was part of Week of Welcome activities at UTRGV. ANDREA TORRES/ THE RIDER
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley will hold a Vaqueros Vote Rally this week to register future voters.
In Edinburg, the rally will take place Tuesday at the Student Union Commons.
In Brownsville, the rally is scheduled Wednesday on the Student Union lawn. Both rallies are expected to take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Last Tuesday, 10 UTRGV students and staff attended the Vaquero Vote Deputy Training on the Edinburg campus. A training was also conducted last Thursday on the Brownsville campus.
UTRGV partnered with the Texas Freedom Network and the Hidalgo County Elections Department to provide the training for those interested in becoming volunteer deputy registrars.
Voter Registration Specialist Ruben Cervantes conducted the Edinburg session, explaining how to assist the community on registering to vote and, specifically, what to and what not to ask a potential voter.
Ruben Garza, regional field organizer for the Texas Freedom Network, emphasized the importance of voter education, as many students are unaware of precinct locations and elections dates and times.
Ruben Cervantes, an Hidalgo County voter registration specialist, shows the application for the deputy voter registrar certification during the Vaquero Voter Deputy training held last Tuesday on the Edinburg campus. The event was part of Week of Welcome activities at UTRGV. ANDREA TORRES/ THE RIDER
Garza also explained the process of voting and strategies for talking to students about voting.
Patricia Montemayor, student activities program coordinator, said Student Involvement will need help from deputies to register students to vote.
“Last year, we had the exact same event. We had over 500 students combined that registered to vote,” Montemayor said. “We’re expecting, since it’s a big election coming up, for almost 1,000 registered voters.
“If you can even just do 20 to 30 minutes you’ll be a great help, because last year we weren’t expecting that much of a turnout so we were a little bit short-handed.”
For more information on the requirements for registering as a volunteer deputy registrar, contact the Hidalgo County Elections Department at 318-2570 or visit the Hidalgo County website at http://txhidalgocounty.civicplus.com.
