Students from St. Augustine’s University capped a semester of civic engagement activities with an Election Day march to the polls on October 8th in Raleigh. View this video testimony of first-time voters who felt empowered through the “Falcons Vote” campaign that Common Cause of NC helped organize with support from administrators and student leaders. Meanwhile, in Elizabeth City, which also held its city election on October 8, the once-blocked student candidate, Montravias King, won one of the two spots to represent his ward on the city council. I think people think this is a young man being told ‘no’
The national Commission on Youth Voting and Civic Knowledge also issued a report this week analyzing the state of civic education across the nation and factors that influence voting by young people. One finding from the scholarly research and numerous surveys: “Non-college youth had a lower 2012 voter turnout in states with photo-ID laws, while same-day registration improved overall youth turnout.” Other findings indicate that parents, teachers and peers have more impact on whether a young person votes than any specific election rule. The full report includes a host of recommendations, including some that the North Carolina legislature just repealed.
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