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Trinity Students Drive Voters to Polls

Trinity University's voter engagement task force provided rides to the Alamo Convocation Center poll site during the midterm election.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Civic Engagement

A white van parked at the curb beside a modern brick civic building with a glass entrance, under bright midday sun beneath a live oak.
Trinity University students rode a campus van to the Alamo Convocation Center polling site on Election Day, part of a voter-engagement push by the university's task force. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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If free transportation to polls were offered near you, would you use it to vote?

Over 200 members of the Trinity University community attended the Party to the Polls event on Nov. 3, which featured food, music, voting information, and merchandise. A Trinity van transported 28 community members to the Alamo Convocation Center poll site, co-hosted with the nonpartisan ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.

Why it matters

Some students do not have cars, so the task force aims to make voting as easy as possible for them. Voter participation goals are set based on past voter behavior data and trends.

The Party to the Polls event drew over 200 Trinity community members, and a single van carried 28 of them to the Alamo Convocation Center poll site. An earlier Oct. 27 early voting trip carried about 25 students, faculty, and community members.

The players

Trinity University

A private liberal arts university in San Antonio, Texas, known for its emphasis on undergraduate education and civic engagement programs.

ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge

A nonpartisan national initiative that encourages college campuses to increase student voter participation and civic involvement.

The details

The TU Voter Engagement Task Force, organized by Jamie Thompson and Mirella Marshall, co-hosted the event with the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. The task force also used publicly available data from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement by Tufts University to guide its outreach.

Timeline

  1. Oct. 5: Voter registration deadline for the midterm election.

  2. Oct. 27: Early voting transportation event drove about 25 people to polls.

  3. Nov. 3: Party to the Polls event held on campus.

  4. Nov. 5: Post-election conversation scheduled in the Fiesta Room.

Civic Engagement Context

The task force relies on the Tufts-led National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement to set participation targets based on how college students have historically voted. Campus programs like this one build on that research by targeting the logistical barriers, such as lack of transportation, that the study's data identifies as obstacles to turnout.

Students and residents without cars can request transportation to polling sites through campus voter engagement programs. Organizers emphasize that removing transportation barriers makes it easier for those without vehicles to cast a ballot.

The takeaway

Transportation is a practical barrier to voting, and campus programs that provide rides can help close that gap for students without cars. Residents interested in similar efforts can look to local civic engagement programs in San Antonio.

What happens next

A post-election conversation will be held Nov. 5 in the Fiesta Room, where students will discuss the election with political science faculty.

Further reading

Explore more local coverage in Civic Engagement for other ways San Antonio residents are getting involved in elections.

Source note: This article includes information reported by Trinitonian.

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If free transportation to polls were offered near you, would you use it to vote?