"I think, with never-ending gratitude, that the young women of today do not and can never know at what price their right to free speech and to speak at all in public has been earned."
-Lucy Stone, first woman to be able to speak in public legally
My Girl Power Project is proud to launch #MyCivicsGirl Challenge, partnering with #GOTVSoAZ2016, as we work to encourage Southern Arizona girls, aged 18-24, to engage in the voting process and be heard. We will run an active campaign from Women's Equality Day on August 26, 2016 through National Voter Registration Day on September 27, 2016, all the way through November 8, which is Voting Day for the National and Presidential Campaigns.
Your Voice Matters!!!
The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement released a recent report focused on what type of impact the youth vote can have on this year's elections. Here is a link to the report, but the main takeaways are:
– Youth Participation Increased in 2016: In 17 of the 24 states for which we have both 2008 and 2016 estimates, the percentage of young people (ages 17-29) eligible voters who cast a ballot in 2016 was equal to or greater than in 2008.
– GOP Youth Drove the Increase: In every single one of the 21 states for which we can make the comparison, as many or more youth votes were cast in the 2016 Republican primaries or caucuses than in the 2008 contests. In contrast, on the Democratic side, a majority of states for which we have data experienced a drop in youth voting.
– However, More Young People Overall Voted in Democratic Primaries: In 18 of the 26 states for which we could produce 2016 estimates, the number of youth votes cast in Democratic contests exceeded those for the GOP. In six states, young Democratic voters outnumbered young Republicans at the ballot box by more than 2-to-1.
As we consider the potential for young people to continue having an impact this November, in both the presidential and in congressional races, these data are a useful guide to where young voters have been participating in this election cycle—and need continued outreach so that they remain engaged through November—and where even more effort is needed to reach and encourage young people to participate in the democratic process.
