18 Students Sue For Vote

Eighteen Harvard students barred from registering to vote in Cambridge filed suit Wednesday against the Cambridge Board of Election Commissioners. The case will be heard Saturday morning by U.S. Magistrate Willie J. Davis.

The election commissioners rejected the students for not residing in Cambridge during the summer and because they had out-of-state drivers licenses.

Harvey M. Burg. coordinator of the American Civil Liberties Union Voting Rights Project and attorney for the students, claims that the Election Board is "discriminating against students on the basis of wealth...The only way to beat this is to pay for property rent over the summer," he said. This is clearly a hardship for the students."

Milton Oliver '72 a co-plaintiff in the suit, is hopeful that the court will give the students a preliminary injunction requiring that the Election Board register them in time to vote in Tuesday's election.

"It seems to me that the law is on our side but it is up to the judges: a lot of judges are just as nervous as the entrenched politicians to give us the vote," he said.

Another plaintiff. Robert F. Coulam '72 said he thought he had the right to vote in Cambridge because he "went away for the summer with a clear intent to return. That is the definition of legal residence."

Burg is unsure how the court will rule on the case. However, he said "If we lose Saturday, we'll fight the case all the way.