With Election Day looming, it’s hard to miss the many political messages written in sidewalk chalk around campus.

Many student organizations view chalking as a cheap way to spread their message — and, because it naturally washes away, it doesn’t have to be cleaned up like fliers.

“It’s about one of the most efficient ways that we can get our message out,” said Jeremy Oehlert, president of the ISU Libertarians and a Daily columnist.

Gabe Whitaker, president of the ISU Democrats, said that although people ignore fliers and other postings, it’s hard to ignore chalking.

“It’s just something that people see and notice,” Whitaker said. “I don’t know that it’s extremely effective, but it gets people’s attention.”

Chalking probably won’t change someone’s vote, he said, but it could cause someone to attend a political event that could change their vote.

Chalking is not a significant part of campus Republicans’ strategy for publicizing events or changing minds, said Louis Kishkunas, president of the ISU College Republicans.

He said the Republicans prefer to spread their message by other means, like handing out stickers and buttons.

“Today, I saw people all over campus wearing Bush stickers,” Kishkunas said. “It’s actually a real measure of support.”

He said that chalking can be effective at times and that the ISU College Republicans plan to chalk a few days before the election as a get-out-the-vote effort.

High-traffic areas of campus — around Parks Library and the Memorial Union, for example — are the best places to chalk, Kishkunas said.

“It’s slightly strategic; you just have to do it where people can see it,” he said.

Oehlert said that the Libertarians’ chalkings have created interest in the group’s political philosophy.

“We’ve had quite a considerable amount of feedback,” he said.

Whitaker said he has received a small amount of feedback on the Democrats’ chalkings. In one incident in particular, he said, the Democrats did an elaborate chalking near the Union containing facts about the Bush administration.

“Someone took water and washed them off the sidewalk before class,” Whitaker said.

Ramsey Tesdell, president of Time for Peace and a Daily columnist, said his organization has not received any negative feedback from students or the university.

“I think it’s actually looked down upon by the university,” he said about chalking. “I heard somewhere that it wasn’t a preferred way of getting a message across.”

According to the ISU student information handbook, there is no specific university policy against chalking.

The dean of students office, which puts out the student information handbook, could not be reached for comment.