2020 Maryland Student Vote Summit
Voting is a building block for deeper civic engagement and more representative and responsive government. But too many young people are not participating in elections. Maryland has made big advances in voting access in recent years, including automatic voter registration and same-day registration, but we have a ways to go to ensure young voters are able to navigate the voting process, especially amidst remote learning and new voting systems put in place because of COVID-19.
Too many Marylanders, and especially young Marylanders are not participating in elections. In the 2016 presidential election, turnout in Maryland as a percentage of the voting population was at its lowest in 24 years. And in 2018, turnout of voters under 29 was at 31% compared to 47.5% of all eligible voters who turned out. The good news is, our college campuses can help drive youth voter participation.
For example:
We have a lot of work to do this fall to make sure Maryland college students register and vote, especially considering we will need to adapt our voter registration and GOTV methods in response to COVID-19.
Too many Marylanders, and especially young Marylanders are not participating in elections. In the 2016 presidential election, turnout in Maryland as a percentage of the voting population was at its lowest in 24 years. And in 2018, turnout of voters under 29 was at 31% compared to 47.5% of all eligible voters who turned out. The good news is, our college campuses can help drive youth voter participation.
For example:
- At MICA 95.2% of eligible students registered to vote in 2018 and 51.7% of students turned out to vote.
- At the University of Maryland, College Park 85.7% of students registered to vote in 2016,and 60.4% of students voted.
We have a lot of work to do this fall to make sure Maryland college students register and vote, especially considering we will need to adapt our voter registration and GOTV methods in response to COVID-19.