Students are being asked to travel home to canvass their local areas in the last week before the referendum on the eighth amendment.
Many students in Dublin have had to stay in college to finish exams and assessment, which has prevented them from canvassing, particularly at home. With just one week before the vote, students’ unions around the country are encouraging students to go home this weekend to join local canvassing groups.
Speaking to The University Times, the President-elect of the Union of Students in Ireland, Síona Cahill, said: “It’s so incredibly important to get home to canvass this weekend and in particular to get out of urban areas and have those conversations. From pre-drinks to knocking on a door, every conversation matters.”
Cahill said that at times it has been “difficult” to organise large groups in the last few weeks due to students sitting exams around the country. “Not only as part of the voting cohort but as part of the canvassing cohort the student voice is imperative”, she said. USI will be using hashtag #HomeToCanvass on social media, echoing the widely used #HomeToVote.
Speaking about NUI Galway Students’ Union’s (NUIGSU) efforts, Welfare Officer Megan Reilly said that the union is using social media to push for students to go home to canvass.
“From talking to younger people you might think this referendum is won but it’s by no means won yet”, Reilly said. Speaking about students involved in canvassing, she said: “I understand it’s a stressful time for people and I really commend the students who are doing it alongside their degree.”
Reilly said that the union would avoid the “popular areas” in the canvassing drives as “the cities will always be well covered”. NUIGSU is also encouraging carpooling as not all students have cars.
In an email to The University Times, Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) President Kevin Keane said “we need passionate campaigners all over the country knocking on doors and spreading the word. Be brave, challenge yourself, find your local group and volunteer for Yes”.
“Canvassing is the most important thing any one of us can do in the last week before the referendum”, he said, adding that TCDSU is “strongly urging” students to go home and canvass this week.
On Tuesday, TCDSU organised a “super canvass”, which saw students campaign in over 20 spots around the city in a push for repeal 10 days ahead of the vote. On Monday, around 30 Trinity staff members campaigned for a “Yes” vote on College Green and Nassau St.
With the referendum drawing closer, campaign efforts by TCDSU, which has long been part of the national student movement to repeal the eighth amendment, have intensified. Last week, the union became an official stockist of Together for Yes, selling merchandise in House Six. It also recently ran last-minute voter registration drives, which resulted in over 1,000 people getting registered in one day.
