Armed with boxes, flyers and door hangers, members of University Democrats loaded into cars ready to convince last-minute voters to support the candidates endorsed by the Austin Progressive Coalition.

The Coalition represents the combined endorsements of both UDems and the Central Austin Democrats. Each election cycle, the Coalition campaigns for its endorsements by either passing out mailers and flyers or by going on block walks to spread the word.

“It’s the joint forces of the University Democrats and the Central Austin Democrats,” said UDems historian Allie Runas, an electrical engineering sophomore. “The endorsements we have in common become the endorsements of the Progressive coalition.”

The goal of the events is to take some of the stress away from voters by giving them a concise form of election research, UDems President Ashley Alcantara said.

“It’s to help make their lives easier, so they don’t have to research it necessarily,” said Alcantara, a government and Plan II senior. “They come, there’s something on their door that says go vote and here’s who to vote for.”

Candidates don’t always receive the support of the Coalition. Sometimes issues that have more of an effect on students can lead to a split endorsement between the Central Austin Democrats and UDems.

“[A joint endorsement] happens pretty frequently, but sometimes the issues more specific to students don’t overlap,” Runas said. “A lot of our endorsements are the same this year, but there are a few on the City Council that don’t overlap.”

However, many Democratic voters and Austinites have come to put great trust in the Coalition’s opinion and look to them for direction when voting.

“There are a lot of people who literally wait for our mailers and our calls to know who to vote for because sometimes people are too busy to look into the races,” Runas said. “They really trust the perspectives that we have as Austinites, so it’s a really powerful endorsement for candidates to have.”

A joint endorsement creates a united front between student voters and local citizens, which in turn makes it easier for Democratic candidates to win their elections, UDems member Luke Lee said.

“It definitely strengthens our cause and unites people,” said Lee, a government freshman. “We all have a common goal we’re trying to get to, and it makes our cause really something to stand by.”

The names of all candidates endorsed by UDems can be found on their website.