"... unfair assumption that young people themselves are the problem." Embarrassed that I held that wrong assumption and did not know the basic facts outlined in this terrific article.
High schools as mandatory voter registration agencies - how simple, how effective.
Shocking that such an obvious solution has been neglected.
Thank you Wendy. Absolutely. Once people see it and start to do it, the practice can be self sustaining. At The Civics Center, we train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. The number of drives has more than doubled in 2025 vs 2023 (most comparable "off" year). You can learn more at thecivicscenter.org or here on Substack at substack.thecivicscenter.com.
Suppose a social security card is an automatic voter registration, valid upon reaching age 18? Why should people have to opt in to our most basic right???
Of course, that would be great. But the power does not exist today to make this a reality. So the question is how to build that power. I have an article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review that addresses this question. You may find it interesting: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/high-school-voter-registration-democracy
Kudo's. Brilliant. Yes. I listen to the talking head elites and greatly appreciate the Contrarians, but it is informing the average citizen about the corruption, violence, and the undoing of our democracy that must reach everyone. Does anybody know how to do that - to get local newspapers, local media, and nightly news broadcasts to be more direct in stating the threats? Otherwise, we're sunk.
I thought you'd enjoy reading about the work we did in Pennsylvania. A student "huddle" included a retired state Supreme Court justice, students talking about the issues that matter to them, and training to run voter registration drives in their high school. It's all tied together. https://www.thecivicscenter.org/blog/pennsylvania-voter-registration-gap
At The Civics Center, we train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. And we partner with many organizations across the country. You can check out our work at thecivicscenter.org or check out the Substack at thecivicscenter.substack.com.
https://www.donuts-democracy.org/ I wrote about it below but this is the link. They get young people involved and registered. Donate to them they’re very effective and they need money.
We send students to Democracy in a Box. Tshirts, candy, etc. We train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. You can check out thecivicscenter.org
We the people that can vote have fallen for decades in taking responsibility for democracy and our duty to vote. It is not the only way to take responsibility for our democracy and keep capitalism in check are the consumers buying power. Meaning all buyers (voters, nonvoters) have the power to make a change for the better.
The County Board of Registrars in my state already registers high school students in the fall of the senior year of high school. That’s how I first got registered to vote. And that was many years ago. But this suggestion here in this article is a great idea if the county where one lives isn’t already registering high school seniors in the public schools. And they likely also go to the local private schools as well. I was registered to vote just before turning 18.
It's great when local officials do this, but it's the exception, rather than the rule. If these efforts were effective and everywhere, we would not see registration rates in midterms average under 30% this century. Depending on where you live, The Civics Center may have data about your county showing the current registration rate for 18-year-olds. Check out data.thecivicscenter.org.
I am seldom moved to comment on articles like this but I am now.
We can’t just expect that, when we register young voters, they will vote, or that they will vote Democratic. Young voters may tend to vote more to the left, but a large numbers of them consider the Democratic party to be just another establishment party that has left them and their concerns behind.
Young voters care about the climate. They can’t forsee a livable future on this planet. Deep down, older voters feel (hope) they will be dead before climate change irreversably changes our world and how we live in it. For young voters it is clear and present in their minds.
Young voters care about building a world in which people are treated fairly, where they might be able to have a good job and live with freedom, rather than being a wage slave with no economic mobility. They care deeply about gender equality, and about racial equity. They care about the cost of education, the lack of good jobs, and the rise of AI. Democratic politicians don’t speak as forcefully about these issues as Socialists like Sanders, Mamdani, or Ocasio-Cortez
Young voters care about Palestine. The Democratic party, stuck in a struggle for funding, is far to weak on this issue.
When young voters do express their preferences, they are reviled by the Democratic Party: they vote for Sanders or West, they are reviled for splitting the vote. When they support a candidate such as Mamdani, Ocasio-Cortez or Omar, the Democratic party leaves them in the dust. The Democrats failure to rally strongly behind Ocasio-Cortez after she was called “Garbage” by the POTUS is indicative. The entire House of Representatives should be walking out in protest for this comment by a sitting President.
I once visited my county’s Democratic Party HQ with a group of young climate protesters, where we met with the head of the party for the county, a longtime party member. She told us quite baldly that politics was transactional, and that young people don’t vote and don’t contribute. “Why should we pay any attention to your concerns?”
It seems to me that we want their votes, we run out and sign up “young people.” But when they ask us to work on their behalf, we trot out the same tropes, “we can’t upset the powerful donors,” “We have to get our people reelected before we can address the climate,” “Sorry, your issue fell to the bottom of the barrel this time.”
Young people aren’t stupid. They are abandoning the Democratic Party.
Hi Judy, I hope you will check out the work of The Civics Center at thecivicscenter.org and our substack at thecivicscenter.substack.com. We are nonpartisan. Pro democracy. Pro youth. We train high school student and educators to run nonpartisan voter voter registration drives in their high schools. To do this effectively, they have to learn about the issues that impact them and who has the power to make change. It's a window into leadership and to democracy. If more young people were registered, candidates and campaigns would pay ore attention. Issues like mental health or affordable housing would stand a chance of getting more attention, and young people would be better positioned to advocate for improvements from both parties.
The author did touch on high schools becoming active in voter registration, but something comes before that. More than just one semester of a course in Civics and Governnment should also be a priority. It's a course that has been abandoned from the curricula in many of our schools or is so watered down that it lacks giving students an effective base for the importance of voting. A shorter election cycle might help too. What we have now drones on interminably and people get burned out and bored. Shorter would be more engaging. We have also moved into the age of technology, and online voting should be offered. Make voting convenient.
Yes, it all comes down to voting. My take is that those who could vote can get up and get registered and show up and vote. It is the individual's responsibility to get this done.
Let’s at least start with making voter registration universal. That would be a great step. Once people are registered, they turn out in big races at high rates.
Fine, but it's not just the big races that count. Midterm and off-year elections stock our state legislatures. It's a grass-roots effort to improve them that will pay off. Every vote in every election counts, and we need to make that clear. We need to ensure this to be true by eliminating gerrymandering.
I agree with you about that. And then the question is where will the power come from to do this? Congress won't do it today. The Supreme Court won't do it. People can't turn out if they are not registered. In the 2022 midterms, registered youth turned out at very high rates -- above 70% in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Outside of competitive races, turnout is low across the board. The issue is attention, education, etc. Voter registration is an issue we can tackle now. It's achievable and is a pathway to more.
There are some freedoms that are abridged, paying taxes is one, and freedom to break laws is another. Technically, we have freedom from both of these, but there are consequences. There are also consequences to not voting.
While I admit that the percentage of voters in presidential and midterm elections is shockingly low, part of me wonders if we actually want those no-show voters. I believe most of them don't vote because they don't care. It's unlikely that they would take the time to inform themselves about the candidates and issues and would merely vote for the name they recognize without wondering how they know the name. They might vote for the person that is the loudest or most forceful in sound bites they happen to catch. They might vote for the guy who says he'll lower taxes or promises something he has no chance of delivering. Or vote for the white man if the other candidate is a woman or minority.
No, we have already suffered from the results of inspired but uninformed voters...twice.
A Pew survey a few years ago said that only 6-7% of students are asked to vote in school or as part of a class. Students we work with tell us repeatedly that they did not even know about voter registration. Students in one high school, who didn't know about voter registration at the start, registered about 700 students after they realized they could take this action. High school voter registration is the most under-appreciate, under-funded, and under-utilized method we have to strengthen democracy today. Only 30% of 18-year-olds are registered to vote in midterms, but 60% go to college. Blaming the problems on our democracy on young people is a common theme, but it's just not what we see.
Hi Laura, I volunteered previously with the Civics Center in getting a voter registration drive in the high school here which draws from 5 towns. I also researched 12 schools in LA to find the right person to help the students run drives there.
I now have the honor to be on the Community Council at our local high school, planning on 2 student-led (studies from the CC show they are the most successful), non-partisan voter registration days in the spring. Our state makes it easy to register, even on Election Day, but they need ID! A drivers license, last 4 of a social security number, or a passport if they have one suffice. Our Sec of State recommends the Civics Center for students to get information, posters etc. also.
I'm excited by the enthusiasm of the students on the Council (very smart kids who run their meetings well, 2 of them are in the middle school!) and hope they will agree to make it ANNUAL.
I have a friend who moved and now lives in Australia and follows US politics. She sent me a bunch of links about voting in Australia. I've read them and they seem to be a much better way to vote.
Compulsory voting is a great idea. And at the same time, it need legislation. Voter registration is a step we can take right now using existing laws. Right now, we can breathe life into these laws and make them real. It will build the power for legislative changes.
One way or another, getting to a place where elected officials care more about democracy and about youth will be more likely when more young people are registered and have a hands-on way to appreciate democracy and learn how to make change and how to preserve what they value.
The Republicans will hate it and take it to trump's biased Supreme Court. But maybe this will force the GOP to become a viable political party once again.
"... unfair assumption that young people themselves are the problem." Embarrassed that I held that wrong assumption and did not know the basic facts outlined in this terrific article.
High schools as mandatory voter registration agencies - how simple, how effective.
Shocking that such an obvious solution has been neglected.
Thank you.
Thank you Wendy. Absolutely. Once people see it and start to do it, the practice can be self sustaining. At The Civics Center, we train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. The number of drives has more than doubled in 2025 vs 2023 (most comparable "off" year). You can learn more at thecivicscenter.org or here on Substack at substack.thecivicscenter.com.
Rock the Vote to get all young people registered to vote. It is their future after all.
AND if they are away at college on Election Day, it gets even harder! Our sec of state gives information on how to accomplish that.
Suppose a social security card is an automatic voter registration, valid upon reaching age 18? Why should people have to opt in to our most basic right???
Of course, that would be great. But the power does not exist today to make this a reality. So the question is how to build that power. I have an article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review that addresses this question. You may find it interesting: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/high-school-voter-registration-democracy
Marvelous; I'll look into this further. Thank you. I think we should put every idea on the table these days to make new solutions possible.
Kudo's. Brilliant. Yes. I listen to the talking head elites and greatly appreciate the Contrarians, but it is informing the average citizen about the corruption, violence, and the undoing of our democracy that must reach everyone. Does anybody know how to do that - to get local newspapers, local media, and nightly news broadcasts to be more direct in stating the threats? Otherwise, we're sunk.
I thought you'd enjoy reading about the work we did in Pennsylvania. A student "huddle" included a retired state Supreme Court justice, students talking about the issues that matter to them, and training to run voter registration drives in their high school. It's all tied together. https://www.thecivicscenter.org/blog/pennsylvania-voter-registration-gap
A few weeks ago, I read about an organization that was going into high schools with donuts to attract students to their voter registration tables.
I wish I had jotted down the info about this group— they were fundraising to expand their program. Anybody know more about this group?
At The Civics Center, we train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. And we partner with many organizations across the country. You can check out our work at thecivicscenter.org or check out the Substack at thecivicscenter.substack.com.
https://www.donuts-democracy.org/ I wrote about it below but this is the link. They get young people involved and registered. Donate to them they’re very effective and they need money.
Wonderful, thanks!
I used to teach college students, and it is crazy(!) how much a donut or even a piece of candy could stimulate their interest in the subject matter!
We send students to Democracy in a Box. Tshirts, candy, etc. We train students and educators to run nonpartisan voter registration drives in their high schools. You can check out thecivicscenter.org
Donuts and Democracy…. Excellent outfit, and they need money so donate
Thank you!
voters should know to vote...
by now everyone is feeling the results of not voting
We the people that can vote have fallen for decades in taking responsibility for democracy and our duty to vote. It is not the only way to take responsibility for our democracy and keep capitalism in check are the consumers buying power. Meaning all buyers (voters, nonvoters) have the power to make a change for the better.
The County Board of Registrars in my state already registers high school students in the fall of the senior year of high school. That’s how I first got registered to vote. And that was many years ago. But this suggestion here in this article is a great idea if the county where one lives isn’t already registering high school seniors in the public schools. And they likely also go to the local private schools as well. I was registered to vote just before turning 18.
It's great when local officials do this, but it's the exception, rather than the rule. If these efforts were effective and everywhere, we would not see registration rates in midterms average under 30% this century. Depending on where you live, The Civics Center may have data about your county showing the current registration rate for 18-year-olds. Check out data.thecivicscenter.org.
I am seldom moved to comment on articles like this but I am now.
We can’t just expect that, when we register young voters, they will vote, or that they will vote Democratic. Young voters may tend to vote more to the left, but a large numbers of them consider the Democratic party to be just another establishment party that has left them and their concerns behind.
Young voters care about the climate. They can’t forsee a livable future on this planet. Deep down, older voters feel (hope) they will be dead before climate change irreversably changes our world and how we live in it. For young voters it is clear and present in their minds.
Young voters care about building a world in which people are treated fairly, where they might be able to have a good job and live with freedom, rather than being a wage slave with no economic mobility. They care deeply about gender equality, and about racial equity. They care about the cost of education, the lack of good jobs, and the rise of AI. Democratic politicians don’t speak as forcefully about these issues as Socialists like Sanders, Mamdani, or Ocasio-Cortez
Young voters care about Palestine. The Democratic party, stuck in a struggle for funding, is far to weak on this issue.
When young voters do express their preferences, they are reviled by the Democratic Party: they vote for Sanders or West, they are reviled for splitting the vote. When they support a candidate such as Mamdani, Ocasio-Cortez or Omar, the Democratic party leaves them in the dust. The Democrats failure to rally strongly behind Ocasio-Cortez after she was called “Garbage” by the POTUS is indicative. The entire House of Representatives should be walking out in protest for this comment by a sitting President.
I once visited my county’s Democratic Party HQ with a group of young climate protesters, where we met with the head of the party for the county, a longtime party member. She told us quite baldly that politics was transactional, and that young people don’t vote and don’t contribute. “Why should we pay any attention to your concerns?”
It seems to me that we want their votes, we run out and sign up “young people.” But when they ask us to work on their behalf, we trot out the same tropes, “we can’t upset the powerful donors,” “We have to get our people reelected before we can address the climate,” “Sorry, your issue fell to the bottom of the barrel this time.”
Young people aren’t stupid. They are abandoning the Democratic Party.
Hi Judy, I hope you will check out the work of The Civics Center at thecivicscenter.org and our substack at thecivicscenter.substack.com. We are nonpartisan. Pro democracy. Pro youth. We train high school student and educators to run nonpartisan voter voter registration drives in their high schools. To do this effectively, they have to learn about the issues that impact them and who has the power to make change. It's a window into leadership and to democracy. If more young people were registered, candidates and campaigns would pay ore attention. Issues like mental health or affordable housing would stand a chance of getting more attention, and young people would be better positioned to advocate for improvements from both parties.
The author did touch on high schools becoming active in voter registration, but something comes before that. More than just one semester of a course in Civics and Governnment should also be a priority. It's a course that has been abandoned from the curricula in many of our schools or is so watered down that it lacks giving students an effective base for the importance of voting. A shorter election cycle might help too. What we have now drones on interminably and people get burned out and bored. Shorter would be more engaging. We have also moved into the age of technology, and online voting should be offered. Make voting convenient.
Yes, it all comes down to voting. My take is that those who could vote can get up and get registered and show up and vote. It is the individual's responsibility to get this done.
Should we do as Australia does and make voting mandatory?
Let’s at least start with making voter registration universal. That would be a great step. Once people are registered, they turn out in big races at high rates.
Fine, but it's not just the big races that count. Midterm and off-year elections stock our state legislatures. It's a grass-roots effort to improve them that will pay off. Every vote in every election counts, and we need to make that clear. We need to ensure this to be true by eliminating gerrymandering.
I agree with you about that. And then the question is where will the power come from to do this? Congress won't do it today. The Supreme Court won't do it. People can't turn out if they are not registered. In the 2022 midterms, registered youth turned out at very high rates -- above 70% in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Outside of competitive races, turnout is low across the board. The issue is attention, education, etc. Voter registration is an issue we can tackle now. It's achievable and is a pathway to more.
We're supposed to have freedom of choice. Does not that include freedom to vote or not to?
There are some freedoms that are abridged, paying taxes is one, and freedom to break laws is another. Technically, we have freedom from both of these, but there are consequences. There are also consequences to not voting.
While I admit that the percentage of voters in presidential and midterm elections is shockingly low, part of me wonders if we actually want those no-show voters. I believe most of them don't vote because they don't care. It's unlikely that they would take the time to inform themselves about the candidates and issues and would merely vote for the name they recognize without wondering how they know the name. They might vote for the person that is the loudest or most forceful in sound bites they happen to catch. They might vote for the guy who says he'll lower taxes or promises something he has no chance of delivering. Or vote for the white man if the other candidate is a woman or minority.
No, we have already suffered from the results of inspired but uninformed voters...twice.
A Pew survey a few years ago said that only 6-7% of students are asked to vote in school or as part of a class. Students we work with tell us repeatedly that they did not even know about voter registration. Students in one high school, who didn't know about voter registration at the start, registered about 700 students after they realized they could take this action. High school voter registration is the most under-appreciate, under-funded, and under-utilized method we have to strengthen democracy today. Only 30% of 18-year-olds are registered to vote in midterms, but 60% go to college. Blaming the problems on our democracy on young people is a common theme, but it's just not what we see.
This is so important! Thank you for alerting us all!
Hi Laura, I volunteered previously with the Civics Center in getting a voter registration drive in the high school here which draws from 5 towns. I also researched 12 schools in LA to find the right person to help the students run drives there.
I now have the honor to be on the Community Council at our local high school, planning on 2 student-led (studies from the CC show they are the most successful), non-partisan voter registration days in the spring. Our state makes it easy to register, even on Election Day, but they need ID! A drivers license, last 4 of a social security number, or a passport if they have one suffice. Our Sec of State recommends the Civics Center for students to get information, posters etc. also.
I'm excited by the enthusiasm of the students on the Council (very smart kids who run their meetings well, 2 of them are in the middle school!) and hope they will agree to make it ANNUAL.
I have a friend who moved and now lives in Australia and follows US politics. She sent me a bunch of links about voting in Australia. I've read them and they seem to be a much better way to vote.
For anyone interested, these are the links.
How Compulsory Voting Works: Australians Explain
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/22/world/australia/compulsory-voting.html
How To Vote
https://www.aec.gov.au/voting/how_to_vote/
How compulsory voting works in Australia
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx20gy2lz4go
What the U.S. Can Learn From How Australia Votes
https://pulitzercenter.org/stories/what-us-can-learn-how-australia-votes
Compulsory voting is a great idea. And at the same time, it need legislation. Voter registration is a step we can take right now using existing laws. Right now, we can breathe life into these laws and make them real. It will build the power for legislative changes.
I don't know, Laura. Having Republicans hold 27 out of 50 state governorships and in
State Legislatures: Republicans control both legislative chambers in 28 states.
It would take a change in the Constitution for federal elections which I don't see happening.
One way or another, getting to a place where elected officials care more about democracy and about youth will be more likely when more young people are registered and have a hands-on way to appreciate democracy and learn how to make change and how to preserve what they value.
The Republicans will hate it and take it to trump's biased Supreme Court. But maybe this will force the GOP to become a viable political party once again.