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Maine East Students Take First Step Toward Voting at Registration Event Hosted by LWVPR
PARK RIDGE, IL, October 9, 2021—Despite being able to register to vote online, students still seem eager to register in person, with 92 students registering to vote at a League of Women Voters of Park Ridge event at Maine East High School in Park Ridge. The event took place over the mornings of October 7 and 8.
Carl Brownell, the school’s social science department chair, noted that students appreciated the convenience of registering to vote at their school.
Civics and government teachers at Maine East try to keep students engaged after they register to vote by making sure they have resources and links to candidates’ websites so they can make informed choices in elections.
While Brownell estimated that between 20 to 40 Maine East students serve as election judges during each election cycle, he noted that for many students, going from registering to vote to actualy getting out and voting can feel like a huge step.
“The biggest thing for a lof of them is getting over the anxiety or fear of the process and seeing, how does this work?” he said. Other than getting a driver’s license, this is students’ first introduction into becoming an adult and making decisions for themselves, he noted. “I think for a lot of them, that excites them. For others, it intimdates them. For others, they have perhaps too many other things in their lives that are competing for their attention and that maybe impedes them from following through and doing some of the work you need to do to vote.”
To help students along, the LWV of Park Ridge invited students to sign up to have League members contact them to remind them to vote around election time and answer any questions they may have about the process. “Our aim is not just to register new voters, but to give them the tools they need to cast their votes,” said Karen Reid, LWV of Park Ridge director of voter services.
By hosting registration events, the LWV of Park Ridge hopes to make the voting process a little less intimidating. From what Brownell said, the group may be succeeding. “One teacher told me (her students) came back to her classroom and they said, ‘We used to think you were the nicest older woman in our lives. And now we met the League of Women Voters, and they outdid you. They were so nice. They gave us stickers, they gave us chocolate, they got us registered to vote.”
To request information about the League of Women Voters of Park Ridge or to host a voter registration drive for your organization or event, email lwvparkridge@gmail.com.
The League of Women Voters of Park Ridge is a nonpartisan political organization dedicated to making democracy work through voter education, issue advocacy and citizen participation. For more information, please visit www.lwvpr.org or follow us on Facebook or Instagram.
Nearly 90 Maine West Students Register to Vote at League of Women Voters Event
PARK RIDGE, IL, October 1, 2021—The League of Women Voters of Park Ridge celebrated National Voter Registration Day on September 28 by registering 89 students to vote at an all-day event at Maine West High School.
“The students were very excited about becoming registered voters,” said Susan Gahagan- Mueller, social science department chair at Maine West. She helped coordinate the event with Karen Reid, the League’s director of voter services. Volunteers from the League and Action Ridge helped at the event. Voter registration drives are a regular occurrence at Maine West.
“We participate in National Voter Registration Day every year and run a second drive in the spring with the goal to get all eligible students registered to vote before they graduate,” said Gahagan-Mueller. About 10 years ago, social studies teachers at the school who were Cook County residents became deputy registrars to help with the school’s voter registration drives.
While a few teachers are still registrars, the school has been running its registration drives through the Cook County online platform where students can complete their registration applications on their own. Registering to vote is just the first step in the process, noted Reid. “We will continue to serve as a resource for students,” she said. “We’ll remind them of important dates and help them plan their votes in upcoming elections.”
To register to vote online, Illinois residents can go to the Illinois State Board of Elections website at https://ova.elections.il.gov. Applicants will need an Illinois Driver’s license or state ID to apply. To apply by mail, suburban Cook County residents can go to https:// www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/agency/register-vote to print out a form. Applicants can complete a mail-in registration using the last four digits of their social security number in lieu of a driver’s license or state ID. To request information about the League of Women Voters of Park Ridge or to host a voter registration drive for your organization or event, email lwvparkridge@gmail.com.
The League of Women Voters of Park Ridge is a nonpartisan political organization dedicated to making democracy work through voter education, issue advocacy and citizen participation. For more information, please visit www.lwvpr.org or follow us on Facebook or Instagram.
