A host of Binghamton University artists will perform at Rock the Vote this Thursday in an effort to increase voter registration among their peers.

The event, which is sponsored by the College Libertarians, College Democrats, Late Nite Binghamton and College Republicans, as well as the Model UN, Binghamton Underground Music Presents and NYPIRG, will begin at 7 p.m. in the Mandela Room.

The free concert will feature artists Lauren O’Connell, Koichi Tanaka, Raincoat Company, Jeff Colonel & Company and Mike Brenner.

According to its Web site, Rock the Vote is a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization started in 1990 with the primary purpose of increasing youth voter turnout around the country by combining politics and entertainment.

“We want students to have fun,” said Daniel Levin, president of College Democrats. “It’s a concert, so hopefully we’ll get a good turnout and raise awareness among students and get them involved.”

Levin said that posters will be going up around campus to encourage attendance, and each student will receive a flyer in his or her mailbox containing all the information about the event.

“It’s important to become involved in politics in college,” Levin said. “It’s a tight race, and college students can really make a difference by raising their voices.”

According to Randal Meyer, president of College Libertarians, there will be six tables in the back of the Mandela Room where students will be able to register quickly as they listen to the concert.

“As a political group leader, I think that the most important function of students is to vote,” he said. “We want to raise the amount of people that are influencing the political system.”

The Rock the Vote Web site’s blog shows that efforts to get students involved are working.

According to CNN’s exit polls for Super Tuesday and statistics from the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), youth voter turnout increased significantly in most states from past years.

In some cases, the numbers were double, triple and even quadruple the turnout from 2000 and 2004.

“Young voters are sweeping the nation,” read the blog on Feb. 5. “This is our year, our election, and we’re taking this country into our hands. This is awesome.”

Binghamton’s Rock the Vote will aim to help BU students mirror the national trends of increasing youth registration.

“We put a lot of work into this, and I think it’s going to be a real success,” Levin said.

On the way to the concert students will also be able to stop by the Old University Union Hall and listen to the WHRW Second Annual Student Association Debates, which will run from 5 to 9 p.m.

The SA candidates will voice their opinions on various issues, and give students a chance to make an informed decision when the SA elections are held on March 5 and 6.