Making Voting More Accessible for Youth in Michigan This Election

In the 2022 midterm elections, Michigan led the nation in youth voter turnout at 37.6%, according to a report by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. Given all that’s happened since — the crisis in Gaza, Vice President Kamala Harris’s entry into the presidential race, and the assassination attempts against former President Donald Trump — two questions loom large this Election Day: How do youth in this critical battleground state feel about participating now, and how are groups motivating them to vote?

“Well, I think it’s obviously an individual’s right to be involved in the electoral process, or if they decide not to, that is their right as well,” says State Senator Sam Singh. “Now, I know presidential elections especially have a significant impact on our state as well as our university, and I would hope … people utilize that power to vote to make sure their voices are heard.”

Gabe McDougall, a political science student at MSU, intends to vote in today’s election. “I’ve always been a Democrat, so I knew from the start I was going to vote for Biden or Kamala either way,” McDougall says.

McDougall notes that he doesn’t know anybody who won’t vote after considering the crisis in Gaza. Still, he has seen messages on social media through TikTok and Instagram. “I can kinda see where people are coming from that, but at the same time, if you don’t vote and Trump wins, that’s probably not gonna be the best for Gaza either,” he says. “In my opinion, it’s probably worse than the Democrats staying in.”

McDougall believes the Democratic Party has done a “good job” addressing young voters’ concerns, especially after Harris entered the race.

Singh, for his part, believes candidates must make a convincing case that “it’s important enough to come out to this election.”

MSU College Republicans and MSU Turning Point USA did not respond to requests for comment.

Excitement and Reluctance Among Youth

Aiden Bourgeau, a programming intern for MSU Vote that seeks to develop good civic habits and acclimate students to voting, including helping them find accurate information and check registration, says many students are excited about the upcoming election, and many hot-topic issues are motivating them to vote, including reproductive health and student-loan forgiveness.

“My sense is that we should be able to have enough of those issues to be at least inspiring enough for young people to vote, but in the end, they’re gonna make that decision on their own,” Singh said.

Bourgeau still sees some hesitancy among youth. “There definitely are people who are reluctant to participate,” he says, adding that this is because some think their vote won’t count and aren’t “fans” of the candidates’ policies.

“Even if there were people who aren’t in support of candidates, I’d say you still have an opportunity to make your voice heard … to go out there and participate in democracy, and the fact that we have the ability to vote is incredible here in the United States, and it is one of the most important and fundamental rights that we have as US citizens.

“You might not see the direct or exact change that you hope to see, but you do start that process … if you continue to have those civic habits that we hope all students form … you know you’ll continue voting for the rest of your life, and hopefully, if you’re doing that you will be able to make the changes you want to see in the government,” Bourgeau says.

MSU Vote debuted a brand-new website this year with detailed guides and accurate links that the local clerk’s offices check. Here students can access a step-by-step voting guide on registering, requesting absentee ballots, and finding their polling location. Bourgeau says this helps motivate students to vote by making it “super easy and super accessible.”

 “We also work directly with the clerk’s offices and the secretary of state to … figure out ways to make voting accessible here on campus,” Bourgeau says.

New State Laws Remove Barriers

People now can register to vote until Election Day instead of having to register “at least 28 days beforehand,” Singh said. There were also options to vote early and request absentee ballots. In the past, first-time voters could not get an absentee ballot.

Under the new state law requiring early voting, there were 14 days of early voting from Oct. 21 through Nov. 3 at WKAR Studio B in the MSU Communication Arts and Sciences building instead of the minimum nine days. A tabulator and the clerk’s office were there.

Singh has seen long lines, especially in university communities. He recounted the last election cycle when people lined up to vote by 8 p.m. but didn’t get to cast their ballots until midnight.

“We wanted to remove as many barriers as possible for them, and I think now we probably have some of the best policies to allow people not to find themselves in huge lines,” Singh said.

This year, MSU Vote started a new Democratic Engagement Internship that hired and trained students to have civil, peer-to-peer conversations about voting during election season. The interns deployed across campus to discuss voting with students at tables complete with stickers and T-shirts.

The initiative has had great results. MSU Vote receives the NSLV data from Tufts University, a partnership of more than 1,000 universities and colleges across the United States that collect data on student turnout. In recent years, Michigan State University has stood out as one of the top colleges in voter student registration and turnout.

In the 2020 presidential election cycle, roughly 90% of MSU students eligible to vote registered on campus and about 76% turned out. Bourgeau says the initiative expects turnout to be very high this year because of the presidential election.

Discuss and Debate to Improve

The initiative is always looking for ways to improve, Bourgeau says. During election cycles, MSU Vote holds committee meetings twice a month, where student groups and faculty members can discuss issues in democratic fashion.

“We have roughly 20-30 people at any time we show up to any of our meetings to converse and debate and help us strategize on different ways that we can collaborate with our different faculties and facilities across campus, which is a big part of also getting people aware of what we provide during an election season, which is super helpful to helping us get the turnout,” Bourgeau says.

It’s also an opportunity for students to voice how they would like to be supported during an election cycle.