I am a college student myself registered to vote where I go to school (originally from Chicago, school is downstate so I am definitely out of my home district). I am planning on doing early voting but regardless, I thought it smart to look up any requirements on the county's website while making sure I was listed as registered. Well I did find something that may save me a LOT of time, especially considering I have to walk a good distance to cast my vote. I really hate asking this since it sounds desperate but I feel this is one instance where it's imperative: please rec this and spread the word outside the website!
I don't know how it's done in other precincts but I'll assume that for many it may be similar and thus this is very important, especially since a) we are relying on the youth vote and b) first-time voters may not be very aware of this.
Anyway for my voting it says that as a first time voter I must show proper identification that shows my registration address. This is an important point because most students have a driver's license but it will display for their home address which for many students is NOT their address at school if they are not voting absentee.
For Champaign County (Illinois), this is what is said:
Acceptable Forms of Identification Include:
*
A valid and current photo identification with your registration address (such as a Driver's License or State ID).
*
A current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that displays your name and registration address.
*
Registered voters who live in University of Illinois Residence Halls may bring a copy of their Move-In Notice which is available from University Housing (100 Clark Hall, 1203 S. Fourth Street, Champaign, 333-7111).
Please bring this identification with you when you go to vote.
For students living in a house or apartment, the second requirement should be easier to come about for many (though not all, depending on the arrangements). The third requirement is the only one I can provide as a dorm resident whose DL says "Chicago", and thus I have to go get that documentation as cited today (I plan on early voting today so I don't have to wake up on a weekend).
This is obviously important because many students may not bring anything more than a Driver's License and it may NOT be adequate. Of course this will cause problems at the poll, not the least of which includes having to go all the way back home and back in possibly a large line (and we know how those can be, esp. when we're fearing vote purging in places like Ohio!)
I really recommend that anyone who is either in college, knows of people in college, or has the ability to somehow communicate or spread a message to college voters, to do so. Remind voters when phonebanking or in just random conversation (be sure to have them tell their friends), and if at all possible, put up flyers around the campuses! I plan on doing so on my own accord even though I am in a safe state over the weekend (thank FSM for lots of unused printing pages that need to be wasted).
Make sure all young voters know of their particular county's ID requirements (either give them the documented information or point out where to find them e.g. specific county clerk websites' election pages) and how to get the proper paperwork if ID cards are insufficient. For many this may require contacting a school office for the proper documentation, as in my example, and the last thing we want people doing on Election Day is scrambling around for the proper identification, especially if they're late-arrivals to the polling stations.
The main thing I want to point out is that every county clerk's website may be different and the information may be difficult to find without rummaging through many pages. I found what I was looking for checking my registration status and it said on the bottom that I must display my ID (and gave a list of such as I provided) but am finding difficulty getting a hold of it otherwise. Of course the optimal thing to do is to tell the voters what they need to bring instead of telling them to check the website or call the county clerk's office. Less work and hassle for them means more likelihood of voting for them which benefits us all :-).
I really wish I could give you more information, but since every state and county may have different requirements all I can offer is my personal example and some advice. Not sure of what more there can be but if there is anything else that should probably go up here, feel free to divulge and if applicable I'll add it with proper credit.