With the election now less than a month away, it’s about that time to give some nonpartisan electoral tips and go over the information voters need to know before Nov. 6.

First, and most importantly, make sure you’re registered to vote. If you just can’t remember, register again; the most recent form they receive will be the one that counts on Election Day.

Many groups on campus, including New York Public Interest Research Group and the Student Association are doing voter registration drives, but if you can’t find a student with a form, just head down to the post office in Marshall Square Mall. Every post office in America has blank forms just waiting to be completed.

Another important tip is to make sure that you are registered right here in Syracuse. Because students are at college for eight months out of the year, New York state law allows you to vote here. There are polling places within a few blocks of campus, and it makes voting so much easier when you don’t have to mail in the ballot.

If you’re still concerned that you might not be registered, call the Onondaga County Board of Elections at (315) 435-3312 to verify.

Once that’s taken care of, you can actually head to the polls. Unfortunately, our campus is split up into roughly three different polling places.

If you live in Lawrinson or Sadler halls, the Brewster/Boland/Brockway Complex, The Mount or anywhere around the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, your polling place will be Toomey Abbott Towers. You know that building right next to B/B/B that looks almost exactly like it? That’s the one.

It may seem like a trek from The Mount, but hey, the B/B/B dining hall is the best anyway. Stop for lunch while you’re there!

Everyone else on campus — that’s DellPlain, Ernie Davis, Haven, Shaw and Booth halls, as well as all fraternity and sorority houses — you have it easy. Your polling place is right in Bird Library, so you can make a quick stop between classes.

Finally, everyone in the Euclid neighborhood should join this columnist in voting at the Edward Smith School library. The school is on the corner of Lancaster and Broad streets. That’s just one block further than Lancaster Market, so this is definitely the most fun polling place out of the three.

One last thing about voting in New York: you don’t need a photo ID to vote in most cases. That said, if you do have an ID, bring it with you just in case. It can’t hurt to have it on hand.

Before you go, try to find out a little bit about each candidate, especially the local ones. The Congressional race here in Syracuse is one of the most competitive in the country, so your vote could have a big effect on our federal government.

Each candidate has a website, and you can read a little bit online about where they stand on the issues. For the record, Ann Marie Buerkle is running as the Republican, and Dan Maffei is running as the Democrat.

If you’re feeling especially passionate, the campaigns are always looking for new volunteers to help out. Even if it’s just for a few hours, your time and effort can have an even bigger effect than your single vote. Contact the College Republicans or the College Democrats, respectively, for more information on these opportunities.

I’ll leave you with one final thought: This is an election that really does disprove the idea that one vote doesn’t count. In 2010, the congressional race was decided by 648 votes.  See link here: http://dailyorange.com/2011/10/city-loyal-donors-maffei-bursts-ahead-of-buerkle-in-campaign-money-with-continued-support/

That’s roughly equivalent to 4 percent of Syracuse University’s student body, or a few of the larger clubs on campus. To quote Captain Planet: The power is yours.

Colin Crowley is a senior political science and philosophy major. His column appears online weekly. He can be reached at cocrowle@syr.edu and followed on Twitter at @colincrowley.

Published on October 7, 2012 at 10:40 am