"We dig. You decide." - VoteGopher.com
VoteGopher is "your one-stop, non-partisan election resource, created by young voters to focus on the issues." A new site has been created by students for students, with the goal of educating and encouraging young voters. And it can help you have some politically aware discussions with your student. Here are some of the tools available on the VoteGopher site...

Issues
When you click on the "Issues" tab, you can check out 25 key issues. For each one, from the Environment to Diplomacy to Economic Recovery, VoteGopher.com offers bulleted points summarizing both John McCain's and Barack Obama's perspectives. The issues included are:

International:
• Iraq
• Diplomacy
• Terrorism & Homeland Security
• Middle East

Economic:
• Economic Recovery
• Taxes & Spending
• Trade & Globalization
• Labor & Business Regulations

Domestic:
• Healthcare
• Energy
• Environment
• Immigration
• Education
• Social Security

Social:
• Abortion & Stem Cells
• Gun Policy & Crime
• Gay Rights
• Poverty

Political:
• The Courts
• Government Reform
• Vice President

Candidate Qualities:
• Experience & Background
• Team
• Message
• Controversies

These at-a-glance summaries are informative and comprehensive.

My Ballot
The My Ballot section allows you to find your candidate when it comes to various issues. Click on your preference (John McCain, Barack Obama, 3rd Party or No Preference), explain your position and rank the importance you give that issue. The My Ballot tally will tell you who your preferred candidate is.

Video Breakdowns
This section offers a variety of video clips where the candidates discuss various issues. VoteGopher gives a brief overview of each issue and then provides summarized commentary as clips of the candidates play via YouTube.
Bloggopher The "Bloggopher" blog feature explores issues more in depth, providing updates on the candidates' stances as well as issue debates. Readers are encouraged to comment on the posts and to take part in discussion boards about the issues, too. The site also has an Election Coverage section coming soon.

Consider tapping into VoteGopher to help you and your student make more informed choices once November 4 rolls around.

"Gopher" it!

Absentee Voter Guide
The Harvard Institute of Politics offers a comprehensive online resource full of all the state-by-state info college students need to vote by absentee ballot when they're away at school. It's available at www.iop.harvard.edu/Voter-Information-Center.