PRESS RELEASE from Brennan Center for
Justice/Rock the Vote
New Student Voting
Guide, Registration Drives To Empower Young Voters
Brennan
Center
for Justice and Rock the Vote Join Forces to Engage Student
Voters for November
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 12, 2012
Contact:
Erik Opsal
(646-292-8356,
erik.opsal@nyu.edu) or Chrissy Faessen
(202-368-1706,
Chrissy@rockthevote.com)
NEW YORK, NY – As concerns mount about Election Day
confusion over new voting laws,,
two leading U.S. voting rights groups —
the
Brennan Center for Justice
and
Rock the Vote
— are coming together to engage student voters and empower them to make
their voices heard in the election. The Brennan Center
released a comprehensive
Student Voting Guide to help
them navigate new state requirements, and Rock the Vote is hosting
registration drives at college campuses across the U.S.
Amid new research showing that voter ID laws
could make it harder for
young minority voters to access the polls,
these efforts will help ensure that students are informed and able
to cast ballots that count.
The new
guide
provides a clear, comprehensive review of voting regulations in all 50
states, including registration deadlines, residency requirements,
identification policies, polling locations and absentee voting rules.
It will help students — who are particularly vulnerable
to rules changes because they often attend school out of state and
change addresses frequently — get to the polls and cast their ballots.
“The
wave of restrictive voting laws across the country has made it harder
for young people to participate in our democracy,” said
Lee Rowland, counsel for the Brennan
Center for Justice’s Democracy Program.
“The
Student Voting Guide will help young Americans navigate the labyrinth
of rules so they can have an impact on Election Day and a say in the
future of our
country.”
The voting landscape has changed considerably in the past several
years, and the Brennan Center’s new interactive guide can
remedy
growing confusion and ensure students can register
properly and cast votes that count. Nineteen states have approved new
voting restrictions since 2008, including the elimination of early
voting, stricter residency requirements, and aggressive voter ID laws.
Five states —
Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, and Wisconsin — have
also
passed laws that make it harder for students to use
their school-issued IDs or exclude student IDs as valid forms of
identification at the polls.
In addition to facing new hurdles to the ballot box, young voters are
also less politically engaged this year.
A recent Gallup
poll
found
that only 58 percent of voters aged 18 to 29 say they will definitely
vote this fall — a major drop from the 78 percent of young voters who
said the same four years ago. The past two weeks, however, have
seen
this intensity on the rise.
And
with nearly 17 million more Americans reaching voting age since the
2008 election, the influence of the youth vote could be immense with
high turnout.
“We’re here to help ensure that every student can cast a ballot that
counts this November,” said
Heather Smith, President of Rock the
Vote. “Amid our country’s
ongoing economic struggles, students are worried about the job market
and student debt. By getting to the polls, young voters can have an
impact on policy and help shape the future.”
To help motivate young voters,
Rock the Vote launched a
“We Will” campaign
that will register 1.5 million voters in time for the election. The
group also kicked off
“Road Trip 2012,”
a bus tour that is hitting college campuses across
the U.S. promoting voter registration. It features musical acts and
celebrities like Jack Johnson, Far East Movement, Motion City
Soundtrack, Tabi Bonney, and Asher Roth.
* * *
The
Brennan Center for Justice
at New York University School of Law is a non-partisan public policy
and law institute that focuses on the fundamental issues of democracy
and justice. Our work
ranges from voting rights to campaign finance reform, from racial
justice in criminal law to Constitutional protection in the fight
against terrorism. The Brennan Center combines scholarship, legislative
and legal advocacy, and communications to win meaningful,
measurable change in the public sector.
Rock the Vote's
mission is to engage and build political power for young people in our
country. Using music, popular culture,
new technologies and grassroots organizing for more than 20 years, Rock
the Vote has registered more than 5 million young people. As the tidal
wave of Millennial generation voters continues to establish its power
at the polls, Rock the Vote will register millions
more young people and make their voices heard.