Last week was National Voter Registration Day, and the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project and thousands of other youth volunteers were out in full force to help their peers register to vote and participate in our democracy.
We’re building on the progress of the 2022 midterm elections to make sure young people keep participating in local elections this fall and are ready to participate in the presidential primaries in the spring. Our team of organizers worked with over 100 volunteers on campuses in nine states to engage students on campus walkways, over the phone and on social media; build visibility via class announcements; and more to create a buzz about the importance of registering to vote.
Here are some highlights from the field:
Florida PIRG at Florida State University hosted a multi-organizational National Voter Registration Day celebration in the center of FSU campus. With eight coalition partners in attendance, the event drew over 40 volunteers, engaged hundreds of students, and helped more than 50 students register to vote.
Photo Credit: Samina Fuller
CALPIRG at UC Berkeley partnered with the campus student government for National Voter Registration Day and helped register students to vote while handing out stickers and candy!
MASSPIRG at Salem State University co-sponsored the campus Voterpalooza event with the Center for Civic Engagement and the Berry Institute of Politics — and brought out the Vote Goat! The Salem State viking mascot joined MASSPIRG, as did the SGA president as well as the president of the university, John Keenan.
PIRGIM at Wayne State University also trotted out the Vote Goat, which brought a line of students looking to register to vote to their table!
WISPIRG at the University of Wisconsin – Madison set up a Donuts for Democracy table for National Voter Registration Day. The club engaged with hundreds of students to help them get vote ready for the next election.
Florida PIRG at the University of South Florida, Tampa held a “Donut Forget to Vote” event with Krispy Kreme donuts.
Florida PIRG at Eckerd College had 16 volunteers promote StudentVote.org at their National Voter Registration Day event on campus.
We’re proud of PIRG student leaders for their contributions to the success of National Voter Registration Day 2023. But this is just the start of the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project work to make sure every student has the opportunity to be heard in our elections by building a culture of civic engagement on college campuses.
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| About The Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project PIRG New Voters Project, Inc. is a non-partisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that works to engage young people in the political process by helping them register and turn out to vote in local, state and national elections. Young people are the largest voting bloc in the country, but continue to be underrepresented in our democracy, so we work to make sure every student has the opportunity to have their voice heard in our elections by building a culture of civic engagement on college campuses. We engage students, faculty, and administrators to build lasting systems of voter engagement for the long term. Since 1984, our field-based, non-partisan effort has helped to register over 2 million young people and make over 3 million Get out the Vote contacts reminding young people where, when, and how to vote. |
| About The Student PIRGs Student PIRGs chapters and clubs provide the training, professional support and resources students need to tackle climate change, protect public health, revitalize our democracy, feed the hungry and more. Students have been at the forefront of social change throughout history, from civil rights, to voting rights to protecting the environment. For almost 50 years we’ve helped our campus communities get organized, mobilized and energized so they can continue to be on the cutting edge of positive change. |