Voter population for both Manila and Laguna campuses has significantly grown in recent years, yet voter turnouts remain around or barely exceed the 50-percent mark required to render a valid election. In the past five years, the highest election turnout was 60.02 percent, during the 2021 Make-Up Elections, while the most recent 2022 Make-Up Elections was scarcely validated at 51.83 percent even with a two-day extension.
The problem with the lack of voting participation from the student body has been a longstanding problem for the USG. Back during the 2015 General Elections, DLSU Comelec was forced to hold off the start of office until the second term of the academic year due to a plebiscite failure after receiving a voter turnout of 35.90 percent, well below the 50 percent plus one requirement.
The problem of only having a passable turnout is observed throughout most colleges and in the Laguna campus, with the exceptions of the School of Economics (SOE) and the Br. Andrew Gonzalez College of Education (BAGCED), whose voter turnout averages are above 70 percent.
In the past three major elections, voter turnouts in the uppermost batches—those within the “and below” range in voter turnouts—had been consistently low in the Manila campus. BAGCED and SOE remain exceptions, though, as they have had higher turnouts than the rest of the colleges most of the time. Throughout this timeframe, all the other colleges never exceeded 25 percent in voter turnout.
With barely any improvements, reversing Lasallians’ indifference toward USG politics remains a big hurdle that the next administration must work hard to address.
Interactive charts by Carriele Carreon