National Voter Registration Day aims to register more than 250,000

WASHINGTON – Tuesday, Sept. 24, marks the 8th annual National Voter Registration Day – a massive, nationwide effort to register voters ahead of the November elections. This year, more than 4,000 nonprofit organizations and a growing number of high-profile corporate partners will join forces with the goal of helping over 250,000 eligible voters update their registration or get registered for the first time – nearly twice the number registered during any previous ‘odd-year’ holiday.

The 4,000-strong network of community partners that will run National Voter Registration Day events across the country includes 1,600 nonprofits, 900 libraries and 600 universities, along with local election offices, businesses, co-ops, veterans’ groups, and more. Since 2012, more than 2.4 million voters have registered or updated their registration as a result of the initiative.

“States, counties and cities across the nation are having elections this year with more than 35,000 seats up for grabs, yet there remains an alarming number of people unable to vote due to lack of proper registration,” said Patrick Sweeney, Political Director at EveryLibrary, one of the key national partners behind the holiday. “To compound the problem, more than 60% of unregistered voters say they were never asked to register, which makes initiatives such as National Voter Registration Day of critical importance.”

As National Voter Registration Day continues to grow in scope, an increasing number of high-profile companies have come forward to engage in the civic responsibility program, providing much-needed energy and awareness for increasing voter participation in both the workforce and within their consumer bases. Some of the major partners in 2019 include Snap Inc., Twitter, Univision, eBay and MTV, among others (view full list of partners here). “At Snap, we believe there is no more powerful form of self-expression than the ability to vote. That’s why we’re proud to partner with National Voter Registration Day to remind our users to register to vote ahead of Sept. 24,” said Sofia Gross, Public Policy Manager, Snap Inc. “We hope to see more companies lend their support to this vital initiative in the near future."

Numerous public figures and celebrities are expected to engage their fan bases across digital and social media in support of National Voter Registration Day. Last year saw the likes of Common, Ellen DeGeneres, Sheryl Crow, LeAnn Rimes Cibrian, Leonardo DiCaprio, Conan O’Brien, Jeff Tweedy, and others all celebrating online. Meanwhile, thousands of grassroots organizations across the country will be engaging voters face-to-face at student unions, community health centers, libraries and other venues. This multi-level engagement is what gives the holiday such a broad reach.

Every year, millions of eligible voters are unable to cast a ballot because of a missed registration deadline, outdated registration information, or other problems with their voter registration. According to Pew Research Center, as many as one-in-four eligible voters in the country are not registered to vote or have an outdated voter registration. Election officials from both sides of the aisle are major champions of National Voter Registration Day as a way to help get their own state registration rolls up to date. “Registering is the first step in exercising one’s democratic right to vote,” said Kim Wyman, Washington Secretary of State. “National Voter Registration Day is an annual opportunity to recognize and celebrate every citizen’s role in shaping our country and its future. In conjunction with this important initiative, we want to remind everyone that this is not an ‘off-year’ election but a ‘close-to-home’ election, so updating your registration or registering for the first time is of the utmost importance.”

Eligible voters can register or update their registration at National Voter Registration Day events across the nation or online at NationalVoterRegistrationDay.org/register.

Published September 17, 2019