Programs
Resource Materials: Voter Engagement
As the 2024 presidential election approaches, colleges and universities across the country are intensifying efforts to engage student voters and ensure they can cast their ballots safely, whether they’re voting in-person or by mail. Historically, students have faced challenges participating in our democracy such as difficulties obtaining ballots while away from home, accessing resources to help them navigate the voting process and meeting specific voter registration requirements such as voter ID laws. These obstacles have impacted college students from fully participating in elections which, in turn, contributes to lower turnout rates. According to the National Study of Learning Voting and Engagement (NSLVE), the national student voting rate in the 2022 election was 31.3%, down almost 9% from around 40% in 2018.
In order to assist campus stakeholders in crafting and executing effective voter engagement strategies for the upcoming election, we have updated our compilation of resources. These materials are designed to meet the specific needs of different stakeholder groups. If you have suggestions for resources that you would like to be included, please reach out to freespeechcenter@uci.edu.
Campus Administrators
Below, you’ll find resources to help promote civic engagement on campus, increase student voter registration and turnout, and engage all relevant stakeholders in a campus-wide effort to institutionalize a democratic culture.
Tools for Making a Campus Action Plan:
- Campus Plan (Voter Friendly Campus)
- Strengthening American Democracy: A Guide for Developing an Action Plan to Increase Civic Learning, Political Engagement, and Voting Rates Among College Students (Students Learn Students Vote Coalition)
- Developing Coalitions Webinar (NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education)
- National Resource Consortium on Full Student Voter Participation (Voter Friendly Campus)
- Integrating Voting into an Online Pre-Semester Process (Harvard Institute of Politics)
- The Ask Every Student Toolkit (Ask Every Student)
- Campus Action Plan Development (ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge)
Tools for Voter Registration:
- Student Voting and College Political Campaign-Related Activities in 2024 (American Council on Education)
- Toolkit for the Promotion of Voter Participation for Students (U.S. Department of Education)
- Campus Takeover (Civic Holidays)
- 2024 Election Preparation Guide (Constructive Dialogue Institute)
- Institutionalize voting with campus portals through TurboVote, Rock the Vote or Vote.org
- Consider joining the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement (NSLVE), Voter Friendly Campus or ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge
Faculty
The resources below are designed to help faculty members make civic education a part of their classroom curriculum, support students to become engaged citizens in our democracy, and connect similarly passionate faculty to learn about each other’s civic strategies.
Tools for Integrating Civics in the Classroom:
- Faculty Leadership Guide (Harvard Votes Challenge)
- #StudentVote Faculty Starter Pack (Students Learn Students Vote)
- Faculty Champions Toolkit (Ask Every Student)
- Your Major on the Ballot (Ask Every Student)
- Faculty Guide to Student Voting in Your Classroom (Scholars Strategy Network)
- RAISE the VOTE (American Political Science Association)
- Balancing Neutrality and Support: Encouraging Students’ Political Engagement Without Getting Political Yourself (Higher Ed Jobs)
- Provide students with voting resources such as Vote.org or your state’s Secretary of State’s website
- Consider joining the Students Learn Students Vote Coalition
Tools to Promote Faculty Collaboration:
Students, Student Organizations, and Campus Coalitions
The following resources aim to help students and their peers promote civic engagement on campus, increase youth voter registration and turnout, and lead the charge in campus-wide efforts to institutionalize a democratic culture.
Tools for Making a Campus Action Plan:
- Civic and Voter Empowerment Action Plan (Students Vote Project)
- #StudentVote Student Starter Pack (Students Learn Students Vote Coalition)
- Ask Every Student
- Partner Resource Library (Students Learn Students Vote Coalition)
- Student Vote: Student Government toolkit (Student Government Resource Center)
Tools for Voter Registration:
- Guide to Voter Registration Drives (California Secretary of State)
- Student Voting Advocate Toolkit (Campus Vote Project)
- California Students Vote Project (California Secretary of State)
- A Leadership Handbook: Students Vote 2024 (ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge)
- How to Vote: Voting Information (Rock the Vote)
- State Student Voting Guides (Fair Election Center’s Student Voting Network)
- Embed Voter Registration Portals through TurboVote, Rock the Vote, or Vote.org
Helpful Tools for Voters:
- Find your Elected Officials Tool (Rock the Vote)
- Ballotpedia
- Out of State College Student Voting Guide (ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge)
- 2024 Election California Voter Guide (CalMatters)
Tools to Increase Student Voter Turnout:
- +1 the Polls Toolkit: Bringing a Voting Site to Your Campus (MTV +1 the Vote)
- Elections as Teachable Moments (Institute for Democracy and Higher Education at AAC&U)
