When Bonnie Maczka arrived in front of Davies Center to volunteer for the New Voters Project, it took some time for coordinator Ben Smith to find blank voter registration forms. But it wasn’t for lack of organization – every stack he reached for was already completed.

The delay was a testament to what the project considers a massive success, marked by the registration of 2,719 UW-Eau Claire students to vote, said Smith.

“I think it’s important students are trying to have an opinion,” Maczka said. “We’re making it easy for them.”

The largest mobilization of 18-24 year olds in American history, New Voters Project is a non-partisan organization striving to increase voter turnout among young people across the nation, said Smith, who is responsible for managing the project’s efforts at Eau Claire.

The project also conducted voter drives throughout the Eau Claire community, registering an estimated 300 new voters, Smith said.

Smith said the project has registered an estimated 115,000 18-24 year olds on campuses and in communities all across Wisconsin. The organization is also operating in Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon.

Promoting student activism could prompt a significant shift in key issues and candidate focus, Smith said.

“Our only leaning, our goal, our intention, our reason, is to empower young people,” Smith said. “When you get young people to vote, that’s when politicians listen. That’s when you’ll hear about lowering tuition.”

In addition to tuition costs, Smith cited health care for entry level jobs, the regulation of credit card debt, and the obvious threat posed by terrorism as issues most relevant to 18-24 year olds.

Smith would not discuss positions on these issues, emphasizing the non-partisan status of the New Voters Project.

The real objective, according to Smith, is helping the student population become a more significant force in the American electorate.

“No matter what position you have on an issue, the more young people that vote, the more credence will be paid,” Smith said.

The New Voters Project is made possible by Pew Charitable Trusts, an organization with funds from a variety of foundations. The George Washington University graduate school of political management is organizing the project, along with Wisconsin’s Public Interest Research Groups.

This week marks a shift in the project’s focus, beginning a phase aimed at increasing voter turnout on Election Day, according to Smith.

He plans on coordinating efforts with campus hall directors, hoping to place more than 150 student volunteers in the lobbies of residence halls to encourage voter turnout.

New Voters Project can still register voters until October 20, after which registration must be completed at the Eau Claire City Hall. Voters can also register online at www.newvotersproject.com or at their poll the day of the election.

“We have a good working relationship with (New Voters Project),” said Carol Schumacher, an elections specialist for the city clerk’s office. “I think it’s important, as long as they’re following laws and doing it legitimately.”

Eau Claire Republicans and Democrats are also conducting voter registration drives, along with multiple other organizations, Schumacher said.