Thomas Breen Photo
Youth-led march on police headquarters.
(Opinion) The last several weeks have seen an outpouring of energy from America’s youth. Furious about police brutality and systemic racism, young people have taken to the streets in protest. On June 5, a youth-led protest in New Haven drew an estimated 5,000 attendees, and saw enormous participation from high school students like us. We witnessed firsthand as hundreds of people our age marched, chanted, waved signs, and demanded social justice.
Yet, despite high engagement in recent weeks, data shows that when it comes to electoral politics, young people are less likely to participate than older generations. According to Census data, only 43 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 said they cast a ballot in the 2016 election, compared to 66 percent of 45 to 64 year olds, and 71 percent of those over 65. In Connecticut, only 37 percent of young adults reported having voted in 2016. Data is not available for New Haven, but there is no reason to believe the Elm City is an outlier.
But low voter turnout among youth is not inevitable: it is a policy choice.
State and local governments have erected substantial barriers to voting for teenagers, including requiring ID, limiting early voting, and reducing the number of polling places. Perhaps most importantly, however, young people are required to take a proactive step in order to cast a ballot for the first time: we have to register to vote.
For many, this first step is enough of an obstacle to prevent them from voting. In Connecticut, less than half of 18 – 24 year olds – 47 percent – say they have successfully registered to vote. And while our state does allow voters to register on Election Day, same-day registration is available only at City Hall, and the process can often break down, disenfranchising young people.
But while voter registration presents a major problem for young people, we believe there is a simple and effective solution: use public high schools to register students to vote.
New Haven Public Schools already attempts to register students, as an NHPS employee is sent to every public high school at least once each year to distribute voter registration forms to those who request them.
However, speaking from personal experience, we can say that these voter registration drives fail to reach broad swathes of students. This year at Wilbur Cross, for instance, the opportunity to register was offered during students’ brief lunch period in the cafeteria. There was no schoolwide announcement that registration forms were available. Administrators and teachers didn’t encourage students to register, and no one explained to students why voter registration is important.
Given inconvenient timing and little publicity, it is not surprising that few students make use of the process – again, the majority of students graduate unregistered.
According to recent Wilbur Cross graduate Tovah Lu, who did register to vote through her school, “Most people didn’t know registering at Cross was a possibility. I only registered because I noticed the registration table while walking through the cafeteria. If I hadn’t seen them, I wouldn’t have known it was an option. And a lot of seniors don’t even eat in the cafeteria.”
New Haven Public Schools should reorient its voter registration efforts by focusing on bringing registration to students, rather than making students search it out. As an example of such an approach, we should look to New York City, where every graduating senior is given a voter registration form on the day of their graduation, regardless of whether or not they request one.
Instituting a similar policy would be an improvement over our current situation, but New Haven should go further. Each June, voter registration forms should be distributed to all graduating seniors during homeroom. Seniors should be able to give completed forms to their homeroom teachers: instead of having students mail in their forms, administrators should be responsible for bringing completed forms to the New Haven Registrar of Voters.
During the half-year course on Civics each student must take in order to graduate, several classes should be devoted to the importance of registering to vote, and to the importance of voting itself.
Schools should institute a “voter registration week,” with assemblies for seniors where teachers and administrators explain how to register, and why registration matters. Schools should hold a contest during the week, with prizes offered to students who successfully encourage other students to register.
This list of ideas is not exhaustive, and community input is necessary before any are enacted. But if we want to ensure that the energy we have seen in the streets transfers to the ballot box, this is the place to start. While expanding voter registration in New Haven Public Schools won’t solve systemic racism by itself, it is a simple, easy, and concrete step our city can take to increase youth participation in politics.
Asked for comment, Mayor Justin Elicker said “this is a great idea, and I fully support it.” If you would like to indicate your support, click here to add your name to a petition supporting this proposal. The Board of Education will begin considering whether to adopt these measures at their meeting on Monday, July 6.
Great initiative! Folks can also register to vote online at https://voterregistration.ct.gov/OLVR/welcome.do. Residents 16 and older are eligible to work at the polls on election day (August 11 and November 3). Apply at https://newhaven.seamlessdocs.com/f/RVAPP. This is a paid job, and an important public service -- many of the regular poll workers are older and will not be working this election. Plus, it looks good on your resume.