Part of history

Young voters exercise right to create change

By Diane Huber | The Olympian • Published September 20, 2008

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They are young and might lack life experience, but Thurston County's 18- to 24-year-olds believe their votes will count in the upcoming presidential election.

Web sites

•Secretary of State: Register to vote, print mail-in forms, check registration status and visit the state's MySpace and Facebook pages at www.secstate.wa.gov/elections.

•Thurston County Auditor: Find ballot dropbox locations at www.co.thurston.wa.us/auditor/Elections/electns.htm.

•The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement: www.civicyouth.org

•Rock the Vote: www.rockthevote.com
Registration

•On the Web: www.secstate.wa.gov

•Mail: Forms are available at branches of the Timberland Regional Library, local City Halls, the Thurston County Courthouse and the Secretary of State's office. Send registration forms to:

Office of the Secretary of State

Voter Registration by Mail

P.O. Box 40230

Olympia, WA 98504-0230

•Deadline: Oct. 4 to register to vote online and by mail. Mail-in applications must be postmarked by the 30-day cutoff. Oct. 20 is the last day of in-person registration.

"Definitely this is going to be a historical election on either side. ... It's pretty neat to be a part of that," said Calder Russell, 18, a North Thurston High School senior.

Much has been made of the youth vote this election, although those 18 to 24 years old historically are the least likely to turn out. As of last week, about 13,000 people between the ages of 18 and 24 were registered to vote in Thurston County, 9 percent of the nearly 141,000 registered voters. That is similar to the percentage statewide.

Turnout among young voters has increased statewide and nationwide since 2000. In Washington:

• About 156,283 voters ages 18 to 24 participated in the November 2000 general election, casting 6 percent of all ballots.

• About 244,112 voters ages 18 to 24 participated in the November 2004 general election, casting 8.5 percent of all ballots.

Young voters are the reason parties are using new online strategies to campaign. And young voters are asking candidates to address issues that are important to them, such as student loans and the environment.

Some believe they have the potential to influence who becomes the next president.

"If we really turn out, we can really make our voices heard," said Josie Jarvis, 19, a sophomore at The Evergreen State College and a member of the nonpartisan Washington Student Public Interest Research Group.

Reaching young voters

Technology is playing a key role in attracting the youth vote this year.

Secretary of State Sam Reed launched an online campaign called "I Will Vote," which lets people post photos of themselves holding an "I Will Vote" sign. The state also has Facebook and MySpace pages with key dates and reasons to vote.

Parties, campaigns and get-out-the-vote groups are using strategies to attract young voters, said Karlo Marcelo, a research consultant for The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), based at Tufts University in Massachusetts.

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