As the Right ramps up its efforts to put up barriers to voting, from voter ID requirements to restrictions on third-party voter registration, it is becoming more urgent to empower students and defend their voting rights. That’s why People For the American Way Foundation’s Young People For (YP4) program wants to empower young progressives with tools to get out the vote among people their age in their communities. With the help of YP4, they will coordinate activities on their campuses, including rallies, phone banks, shuttles to the polls, and student housing canvassing. They will lead the charge to combat political attacks on student voting.
We are among many great organizations working to mobilize and protect the student vote.
The Brennan Center Student Voting Guide is a go-to source for all the information that students in all 50 states will need about how to register and vote.
Our Time runs a voter registration and information campaign in tandem with its support of business endeavors started by young people. They want to maximize the influence of Americans under 30 so that politicians and businesses will better represent their needs. They offer voting FAQs and registration guidance helpful for students.
Rock the Vote is continuing its work to bring young people into the political process—registering more than 5 million of them to vote so far—using pop culture, grassroots organizing and new technologies.
The Campus Vote Project of the Fair Elections Legal Network was started this year as an effort to help college students work with administrators and local election officials to make the process of voting easier and overcome barriers like residency laws, registration deadlines, and strict voter ID requirements. Their Student Voting Guide for 2012 has information to address the typical needs of student voters, including FAQs about voting out of state, absentee voting and registration deadlines. They’ve also produced an Activate Your Campus! Toolkit.
As part of Project Vote’s efforts to promote voting in historically underrepresented communities they provide information about the state of the youth vote and recommendations and tools for increasing the participation of young Americans in the electoral process.