NEWS RELEASE

Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

02/08/2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES - Alex Aichinger hopes that better informed voters can become smarter voters. Aichinger, a professor of political science at Northwestern State University, has been named as one of two Louisiana representatives on the Project Vote Smart Key Vote Advisory Board.

Project Vote Smart is a national non-partisan, non-profit organization providing resources to help inform voters on election issues, candidates and elected officials.

The organization has developed a Voter's Self-Defense System to provide voters with the necessary tools to self-govern effectively, providing accurate, unbiased information. Project Vote Smart covers candidates and elected officials in five basic categories: biographical information, issue positions, voting records, campaign finances and interest group ratings.

"Project Vote Smart will attempt to list votes taken by legislators on key issues," said Aichinger. "This will allow voters to compare what members of state legislature say to what they actually do. Voting is one thing, but voting intelligently is another."

Aichinger's work will concentrate on the Louisiana Legislature, but some federal issues may also be highlighted.

The American Political Science Association honored Project Vote Smart as "The Best" source for accurate political information on the World Wide Web. After studying the 34 finalists' sites, the chairman of the American Political Science Association's Computer and Multimedia section called it a "no brainer."

"How do voters educate themselves on the issues and the candidates? There's no better place to start than Project Vote Smart. Site creators are waging war on elections as popularity contests," said the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel.

"This is a widely respected organization and I look forward to doing my part to help Louisiana voters make informed decisions about this state's future," said Aichinger.

For more information go to www.vote-smart.org.

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