Greek life launches new voter engagement coalition

Fraternity and Sorority Life is partnering with Civic Engagement, above, to create a coalition that inspires Greek life members to participate in the November election. Panther Archives

The emergence of the new Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) Voter Engagement Coalition has sparked a competition between Greek life chapters as they race to see how many members they can register to vote. The initiative is spearheaded by Rithu Gurazada, a junior political science and sociology major in Gamma Phi Beta, and Shishei Tsang, a program coordinator for the Cross-Cultural Center who focuses on Chapman’s Civic Engagement Initiatives. 

“After George Floyd’s death, I saw my peers had not had much exposure to politics and wanted to learn but didn’t know how,” Gurazada said. 

Gurazada approached Civic Engagement Initiatives in June and as a result of her enthusiasm, she was able to start a movement bringing together FSL and Civic Engagement. The collaboration between the organizations is unprecedented, but with help from both she was able to form a coalition composed of representatives from fraternities and sororities, in an attempt to get Greek life members politically engaged.

 “We are trying to have one representative from each fraternity and sorority to represent their chapter, to help create resources to educate people throughout the election cycle and provide support for students to vote,” Gurazada said. 

As a part of the initiative, Gurazada and Tsang have incorporated a competitive aspect to incentivize the students to participate. The chapter that signs up the most members to vote is recognized as the winner throughout campus.

“The fact that we have this voting coalition now, which is something brand new at Chapman especially within Greek Life, is really great,” said Ian Simmons, a senior public relations and advertising major in Phi Delta Theta and a member of the FSL Voter Engagement Coalition.  

 While the coalition is primarily focused on the competition, it aims to educate as well. Gurazada and Tsang’s future plans to maintain political engagement involve many more objectives. 

 “We plan to do more things other than the competition, such as having permanent ballot boxes on campus,” Gurazada said. 

In addition, Tsang and Gurazada plan to shift their focus from voter engagement to civic engagement after election season comes to an end. They are currently working on the details of a continuing initiative as they aim to inspire and ignite passion for civic engagement in Greek life throughout the year.

“Many students don’t think about it, but (political) policy affects all of us, and that’s why it’s so important for our generation to participate,” Gurazada said.

The new coalition has made students hopeful for the future of voter engagement within Greek life, and many are excited to see where the initiative goes.

“It’s so important to vote and make your voice heard, and it is especially important for the Greek community,” said Andrea Guevara, a senior political science and psychology double major in Kappa Kappa Gamma and a member of the FSL Voter Engagement Coalition. “It’s so great that they can do that now.”