Young people are leading efforts to increase voter turnout among their peers

On a fall Wednesday evening, young people waited eagerly in line to enter MGM Music Hall at Fenway for Gracie Abrams’ new “Secret of Us” tour. As excited fans debated which song Abrams would start the concert with, three volunteers wearing Headcount T-shirts approached the line with a QR code.

Headcount is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that strives to equip voters with the tools and knowledge they need to vote. They do this by collaborating with artists like Abrams, Sabrina Carpenter and Remi Wolfe. At trade shows, volunteers hand out swag and badges to encourage people to double-check their registration.

“People may not think about politics when they go see their favorite artists perform, but seeing us at the table is a unique way to engage these people politically,” said Emily Bresnahan, Headcount’s New England regional coordinator.

Jaya Gupta, 18, was standing in line outside MGM Music Hall for a Gracie Abrams concert when she heard about Headcount. Although the Massachusetts native uses her father as a first-time voter, she says having an organization like Headcount is helpful for other young voters.

“I think organizations like Headcount make it easier for people to start the voting process by giving them easy access to voter information,” Gupta said.

Concerts aren’t the only place where young people encourage each other to vote; College campuses are also hot spots.

With more than 30 institutions of higher education within the city, many Boston colleges and universities already implement nonpartisan, campus-wide initiatives to ensure their students are prepared to engage in their civic responsibilities.

In downtown Boston, Suffolk University has Suffolk Votes, a staff, faculty and student collaboration group that aims to make voting easier by providing voter registration forms, reminding students to register to vote and notifying them of upcoming deadlines.

Rachel Cobb, an assistant professor of political science and law at Suffolk University, said students genuinely want to participate in the democratic process, but they need guidance.

“For a lot of people, this is the first time they’ve voted, and we’re all scared the first time we do anything,” Cobb said, “So we as a community and a society need to do everything we can to support them.”

A few miles down the road, Northeastern University and its coalition Northeastern Votes have also been working hard to promote voter registration, education and turnout.

Hilary Sullivan, director of community service and civic engagement at Northeastern University, said that before the coalition was formed, it was the university’s student government that mobilized during elections to increase participation. However, Sullivan says the goal was to institutionalize the practice so that every time a student gained the right to vote, they would have the resources they needed.

“We’ve certainly done a lot this year because it’s a big presidential election,” Sullivan said, “but we’re really trying to make sure that students are voting in city and state elections as well.”

In recent years, youth voting activity has increased.

Tufts University has been studying these trends since 2012.
National Study of Learning, Voting, and EngagementDuring the last presidential election, student turnout soared, reaching an unprecedented 66%, surpassing 52% in 2016.

Jen McAndrew, senior director of communications and planning at Tufts University’s Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, said the university chose to focus on higher education institutions because they play a vital role in increasing youth civic engagement.

“One of the core principles of American higher education is the civic goal of preparing Americans for active civic life,” McAndrew said. “So in this study, we’re looking at these institutions that have historically been places of civic learning and development to understand trends among young voters.”

Across the Charles River in Cambridge, Julia High and Jordan Schwartz are leading the Harvard Vote competition.

“Our main goal is to increase visibility and accessibility,” Schwartz said. “Visibility in the sense that we want everyone to know that we exist and to know that we have resources for them, and also to be available when those resources are actually ready for them, so that the voting process – which is not always easy for college student—can be as simple as possible.”

While these initiatives can have a positive impact on voter registration on campus, it is the peer-to-peer initiatives that have been most effective, school officials say.

“At Suffolk, we involve students in the voting process and encourage them to vote because their friends vote,” Cobb said, “And so being a university that votes becomes part of the culture of our university.”

Similarly, at Northeastern University and Harvard University, much of their programs are built around student-led events designed to engage fellow students.

Matias Gonzalez, a student leader at Northeastern University, emphasized the importance of student-led conversations.

“Getting help from your professors can seem like a daunting task, but when you talk to your colleague, it can just be a casual conversation like, ‘I know this is hard, but let’s talk about some resources,’” he said.

All of these efforts may increase registration rates, but they do not always translate into voting, especially among first-time voters.

Despite historic turnout in the 2020 presidential election, the overall voting percentage for the 2022 midterm elections fell to
31%, lower than in 2018.

Voting absentee, students say, can be especially difficult.

“Each state has different rules, which leads to confusion. They have different rules for early voting and voting by mail. And so it’s not the same process for every student,” Rachel Cobb said.

Julia High, a freshman at Harvard College, said that despite being co-chair of Harvard Votes, she is having difficulty getting a Florida ballot in the upcoming election.

“I requested my ballot online, but my mailing address didn’t show up,” High said. “I had to call my local elections office, but they didn’t know the answer.”

High had to call a second time to find out what the problem was with her ballot. She said the process would prevent some of her peers from voting.

Schwartz faced a different challenge in his home state of Ohio. He requested a ballot last year but never received one despite applying weeks earlier.

“This fall, we’re trying to encourage as many people as possible to request their absentee ballots as early as possible so you can check them, track them, and if there’s a problem, you can get it resolved by calling the elections office in mid-October,” he said. He.

Savannah Ruzzano, a first-year student and Northeastern Voices ambassador at Northeastern University, noted that having ambassadors on campus helped her peers navigate an often complex process.

“We can help you deliver stamps, envelopes, mail anything, print forms,” Ruzzano said. “We’re just trying to make it easier so students don’t get frustrated and give up.”

Despite the challenges, most student leaders remain optimistic that their efforts will expand voting access for their peers.

“Voting matters,” said Matias Gonzalez, who votes by mail in Arizona.

“This election is not just about the big ticket. It’s not just about the president,” he said. “Look at your ballot, do a little research; There may be other important issues at stake.”

Produced with the assistance of
Editorial corps of the Association of Public Media Journalists financed
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