Young People Deserve A Voice In Our Elections. Same Day Registration Can Help

Despite being a full-time political researcher and activist, Charlotte—one of this article’s co-authors—can’t remember where she first registered to vote. Maybe it was at the DMV when she renewed her license; maybe it was at a registration drive on her college campus. In all likelihood, it was both. Like many young Americans, she needed to update her registration countless times during her late teens and early twenties, each time she moved from one dorm or apartment to the next. On several occasions, this re-registration requirement resulted in her simply not voting at all; casting a ballot in a municipal election just wasn’t worth braving the DMV line.