On Tuesday, April 5th, a team of Democratic Deputy Voter Registrars was kept busy all day by enthusiastic Waukegan High School students. More than 75 17 and 18-year-olds registered to vote for the first time.
Illinois law allows 17-year-olds to register and vote in a Primary Election, as long as they will turn 18 by Election Day. It was exceptionally gratifying to see so many young people willing—and even enthusiastic—to take part in our democracy.
We’re especially grateful to the Waukegan High School teachers who encouraged their students to participate in this nonpartisan voter registration event and issued hall passes so they could do so. We also appreciate the warm welcome we received from Waukegan High School staff and administration, who set up our tables up right in front of the main office (and even provided our volunteers with a carafe of coffee). From that prime location, we were able to call out to students as they passed by and invite them to register if they met the age requirement.
By the end of the school day, we had registered more than 75 new voters, many of whom promised that they would show up and vote every time there’s an election. Thank you to all who made this such a successful event.
