Central State University students who live on campus will cast their ballots at Xenia Grace Chapel on November 3, about six miles from campus. For years, they walked across U.S. 42 to vote at Wilberforce University, a neighboring campus.

The change follows the city of Xenia’s annexation of Central State’s main campus on September 24, which moved students into a new precinct, WYSO reports.

Why the Polling Place Moved

Tracy Smith, director of the Greene County Board of Elections, told WYSO that “Central State was in precinct 354, which is a township precinct.” His office had to get quick approval from its board and the Ohio Secretary of State to reassign voters.

Smith said the board has notified more than 617 Central State voters and will bring absentee applications to campus. He also said a permanent fix is coming: “Next year, we’ll make a Xenia city precinct 324. That’ll be Central State’s precinct, brand new.”

The annexation itself came after more than a decade of negotiations. Under the deal, Central State gets lower-cost water and sewer service, and Xenia can collect city income tax from students who live there, according to Spectrum News.

Wilberforce University students are not affected and can still vote on their own campus, a Wilberforce spokesperson told Spectrum News.

Students Push Back and Organize

For students without cars, six miles is a real barrier. “A lot of people are not fortunate to have transportation,” Damari Lipscomb, a Central State senior and member of Kappa Alpha Psi, told WHIO.

Cierra Gee, a student government member, told Spectrum News the trip “kind of discourages people from voting.”

Students are not waiting for a fix. The Ohio Legislative Black Caucus is offering free rides to the polls, and Central State and its Greek organizations are coordinating transportation and ballot forums.

Oluwatoyin Oderinde, president of Central State’s National Pan-Hellenic Council, told Spectrum News organizers hope to run about seven vans, depending on sign-ups. The university enrolls about 2,700 students.

For now, Central State students have one more obstacle between them and the ballot box than their neighbors across the road. How many of them clear it on Tuesday will say a lot about whether HBCU voters can be slowed down by a precinct map.

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