The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Oct. 4, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

As state deadlines for voter registrations draw near, new registrations across the United States are down compared to 2024, according to political data and advertising firm TargetSmart. But there are increases in certain demographics compared with 2020.

TargetSmart used a combination of state data gathering and modeling, and found that 2024 new voter registrations 8 weeks from the election were 15.7 Million, down 42% from 27.3 Million in 2020.   The 2024 partisan lean model shows that 48.8% of those registering leaned Democratic, 34.3% Republican, and 16.9% unaffiliated.  In 2020, 46.7% leaned Democratic, 37.3% Republican, and 16% unaffiliated. 

Among those new 15.7 Million registered voters, there are increases in Black, Hispanic and Asian American Pacific Islanders, and a decrease in new White voters.  TargetSmart also found a slightly higher percentage of younger voters, though Tufts University’s CIRCLE youth voting research group  found increases in only 8 states.   

There was also a slightly lower percentage of women, although the organization found a surge of registrations among Black and Hispanic women after Vice President Kamala Harris became the nominee. 

We’ve linked to TargetSmart’s report at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org, where you’ll also find nonpartisan resources where voters can register or check their registration.   I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
TargetSmart – Smart Voter Registration Dashboard

TargetSmart – Hispanic Voter Registration Surges After Harris Becomes Nominee

Tufts Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) – Youth Voter Registration Increasing; Still Lags Behind 2020

Groups Taking Action:

VOTE.org, Rock the Vote, Native Vote, Vote411, Mi Familia Vota, When We All Vote

Check Your Voter Registration:

• U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
• USA Vote Foundation – Registration, Eligibility, State Election Office Links
• Vote.Gov – Register to Vote in Your State

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #RegistertoVote #VoterRegistration 

The post As State Voter Registration Deadlines Draw Near, Data Suggests 2024 New Registrations Still Lagging Behind 2020 appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for November 22, 2022

Listen!

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Harvard University Kennedy School of Government Institute of Politics – Harvard Youth Poll
Tufts University Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) –
Millions of Youth Cast Ballots, Decide Key 2022 Races
Teen Vogue – Youth Voter Turnout in the 2022 Midterms Shows Strong Support for Democrats, Abortion Rights
CNN – Analysis: Democrats would have gotten crushed this election without young voters

Groups Taking Action:
Alliance for Youth Action, NextGen America, Campus Vote Project, Student PIRGS

Today’s Script:  (Variations occur with audio due to editing for time) 

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

In September, we reported on expectations of a high turnout of younger voters in the 2022 midterms.  Did that turnout materialize, and what were the consequences?

A Harvard Kennedy School study released in late October suggested that 40% of 18 to 29-year-olds said they would “definitely” vote in the midterms.  Then Tufts University’s Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, CIRCLE, found that an estimated 27% of that group DID vote.   That number was historically high, but not as high as the 31% turn out in the 2018 midterms, driven by a reaction to Trump’s presidency and the shooting of students at Florida’s Stoneman Douglas High School. 

CIRCLE’S polling found that nationally, 12% of all votes cast were younger voters, and in battleground states, turnout matched 2018’s 31%.   

Battleground states also saw younger voters break heavily for Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate, Congress & governor.  In Pennsylvania’s Dr. Oz/John Fetterman U.S. Senate race, younger voters supported Fetterman 70% to 28%.   In Arizona’s Senate race, they backed Mark Kelly over election denier Blake Masters, 76% to 20%.  Data shows that youth turnout was critical to the outcomes of races nationwide. 

More details on how youth voters of color voted, and what legislation we can expect from state legislatures to suppress youth voting in our next report.

We have links to articles and resources at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org  For the American Democracy Minute, I’m Brian Beihl.

The post Younger Voters Turned Out and Were Critical to Outcomes in Battleground States appeared first on American Democracy Minute.