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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

To close the 18-year-old registration gap in Maryland: ✅ Strengthen automatic registration at the MVA ✅ Expand AVR beyond the MVA to other agencies ✅ Boost school-based outreach like student election judge programs Learn more at cdce.substack.com/p/maryland-c....

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

Montgomery County offers an additional model: Voter education and school-based outreach through a student election judge program boosted youth registration rates above what license data would predict.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

Colorado shows what’s possible. Small changes to DMV pre-registration can boost rates dramatically. Notifying youth that they aren’t registered boosts rates by 18%, and implementing a default voter registration system boosts them by 29%.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

Right now, 1 in 3 Maryland 18-year-olds is not registered to vote. Expanding automatic registration and voter education can help close this gap.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

And that same pattern continues at age 18. Counties with more 18-year-old drivers have higher registration rates.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

County-by-county data shows that license attainment among 16- and 17-year-olds strongly correlates with voter pre-registration rates.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

A major factor is whether young people have a driver’s license. Driver’s license attainment is correlated with voter registration and pre-registration rates for 16-, 17-, and 18-year-olds.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

Maryland has relatively strong youth voter registration rates, but that’s not the full story. Major disparities exist between counties.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

Our new analysis with the Maryland Democracy Initiative and @thecivicscenter.bsky.social reveals a key link between young drivers and young voters in Maryland. Counties with fewer young drivers are struggling to serve 18-year-old voters.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

The upshot? Voters are most supportive of #Vote16 for school board elections– especially among certain constituencies. This support is sufficient to pass and implement Vote 16 policies in many cities and towns. Read more at vote16.substack.com/p/674-of-new....

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

Certain groups are more likely to support #Vote16, but barriers in perception remain.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

There are *a lot* of voters who support #Vote16 for school board elections but not local, state, or federal elections.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

#Vote16 for school board elections is popular with key New Jersey constituencies.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

In May–June 2025, we worked with the Maryland Democracy Initiative to survey 800 NJ voters to understand support for lowering the voting age.

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

New Jersey is emerging as a national leader in #Vote16 organizing: 🗣️ Student-led campaigns ✅ Newark passed Vote 16 for school boards 💰 @govmurphy.bsky.social‬ proposed $1M to expand the policy statewide

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

67.4% of NJ Democrats support lowering the voting age to 16 for school board elections. A new poll shows growing momentum for #Vote16— but not across the board. 🧵

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

Finally, Dr. Laird shared that she believes that civic engagement is vital for the stability of our democracy. And she shared that as a fun fact— she enjoys crocheting! Thank you, Dr. Laird, for your leadership, scholarship, and impact. ⭐

Why does democracy matter and fun fact graphic

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

The big question driving Dr. Laird’s work is “At what age does someone start to believe in a racial linked fate?” And her top insight is that “Black girls’ awareness of the political world is exceptional!”

Questions she is passionate about and insight to share graphic

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

Dr. Laird’s research focuses on the political socialization of Black girls. She explores how Black women’s political behavior is shaped in adolescence. Check out her 2024 report: Hear Our Voices: Black Girl Tribe Politics Survey at cdce.umd.edu/sites/cdce.u...

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University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement @umd-cdce.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

We’re thrilled to uplift @chryllaird.bsky.social for our first CDCE Faculty Fellow Spotlight! Dr. Laird is an Associate Professor of Government and Politics at the @UofMaryland and Faculty Fellow for the CDCE.

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