| AAUW members have a long tradition of voter education and registration. Get involved by organizing a voter registration campaign in your community. Why should we focus on voter registration? | |
| Politicians listen to people who vote — or they’ll be out of a job. Elections affect your life and the lives of people close to you. Changing a few votes in the U.S. Congress or state legislature elections can directly impact our reproductive rights. For example, in 2002 Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD) defeated his opponent with only 2,642 votes. Helping people register to vote and reminding them of the importance of voting gives them a voice and strengthens the democratic process. Where do I start? |
 | Collect information | | | - Learn about voter registration laws in your area. Contact your city or county registrar of voters to learn about how and where registration is carried out in your community, important deadlines, and how to order voter registration cards and materials. These officials may provide training sessions for groups interested in conducting voter registration drives. Click here to find your state elections office.
| | Develop an action plan | | | - Set goals. Collectively decide how many people you want to register, how many days you want to conduct registration, and how many places you want to target.
- Set dates and locations. Coordinate schedules and identify the dates you will conduct voter registration. Choose high traffic areas. For example, you may want to set up a table at the student union of a local university or community college. Be creative in your outreach efforts. Think about how you might reach those who often do not register or do not vote — including youth and low-income people.
- Divide responsibility. Working in coalition with other groups will allow that ability to delegate pieces of the process to keep the project manageable and exciting for everyone involved.
| | Enlist help, recruit volunteers | | | - Identify volunteers who would be willing to spend a couple hours of their day registering new voters. Publicize voter registration efforts in organization newsletters and e-mail networks and ask for volunteers.
| | Spread the word | | | - A few weeks before your scheduled date, post signs where you intend to have the voter registration drive. Alert the local media to your efforts and keep media as well as your coalition informed of your successes as you progress. Post information on your state/branch web site and publicize the links.
| | Follow up with newly registered voters | | | - Make copies of completed registration forms before you return them to your city or county registrar so you can contact these voters through get-out-the-vote efforts and inform new voters of election dates, polling places, and hours of operation.
- On Election Day, make sure newly registered voters have transportation to the polls or offer assistance. Registering new voters is only effective if they turn out to vote!
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What else can I do?
For more information, contact the AAUW Public Policy Department at 202/785-7793 or VoterEd@aauw.org.
