San Mateo County Press Release

Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder-Elections
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 2 , 2006

Contact:
Warren Slocum
Chief Elections Officer & Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder
Phone: (650) 363-4988 Fax: (650) 363-1903 E-mail: wslocum@smcare.org
Web: www.shapethefuture.org www.smcare.org

Alternate: David Tom, Phone: 650.312.5222 E-mail: dtom@smcare.org

Board of Supervisors Proclaim May 2006

High School Students, League of Women Voters, Board of Supervisors, and
Chief Elections Officer Mobilize Youth Vote

 

REDWOOD CITY, CA—The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors proclaimed May 2006 San Mateo County High School Voter Registration Month building on the program began last year. The partners, the League of Women Voters, the San Mateo County High School Districts and their government teachers, the Chief Elections Officer and the Board of Supervisors are working together to promote civic knowledge and voter participation amongst young people in the County.

Jerry Hill, President of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, extolled the virtues of the program in saying, “What a fantastic opportunity this is to introduce young people to the importance of voting and the take them through the first step in the process to becoming lifelong voters.”

“Working in partnership with the League of Women Voters has been a way to introduce the practice of voting into the classroom through real world voices. Jointly we are working to get this generation plugged into the democratic process. Their ballot box choices from today forward will have an impact on their education, career and in indeed all aspects of their lives,” said Warren Slocum, Chief Elections Officer.

“We have 30 League volunteers contacting over 100 teachers at 34 schools in all the school districts in San Mateo County. I know it’s an ambitious goal, but we’re hoping to register over 5,000 seniors and encourage them to participate in upcoming June 6th Gubernatorial Primary,” explained Carole Dorshkind, who is Chair of the Committee to Promote Student Voter Registration for the League of Women Voters in San Mateo County and a teacher herself. “Having a full month to coordinate with the government teachers in the County has made it easier for the League volunteers and easier for the teachers to work it into their curriculum.”

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SELECTED YOUTH VOTING STATISTICS

“YOUTH VOTER TURNOUT IN THE STATES DURING THE 2004 PRESIDENTIAL AND 2002 MIDTERM ELECTIONS” (CIRCLE, Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, By: Carrie Donovan, et al July 2005)

  • Nationally, youth (18-24 years old) voter turnout in 2004 was 47%, compared to 66% for persons age 25 and over --- a difference of 19 percentage points.
  • Nationally, youth (18-24 years old) turnout in 2002 was 19%, compared to 50% for voters 25 and older --- a difference of 31 percentage points.
  • California: turnout of 18-24 year old citizens in the 2004 Election was 45%, compared to 65% for voters 25 and older --- a difference of 20 percentage points.
  • California: turnout of 18-24 year old citizens in the 2000 Election was 19%, compared to 47% for persons over 25 --- a difference of 28 percentage points.
  • California: turnout of 18-24 year old citizens in 1972 (Presidential Election) was 63%, compared to 37% in 2000 and 45% in 2004. So, compared against 1972, youth voting in 2004 is down significantly (18 percentage points), but there was an increase of 8 percentage points from 2000 to 2004 so maybe things are trending upwards.
  • Comparing California to national numbers, turnout of 18-24 year old citizens in 1972 was 52% compared to 36% in 2000 and 47% in 2004. So, compared against 1972, youth voting in 2004 is down by a lesser margin (5 percentage points), and there was an increase of 11 percentage points between 2000 and 2004.
  • California used to be one of the leaders in youth voting --- 63% in 1972 ranked us 4th in the country, after Idaho (65%), Iowa (65%), Minnesota (64%), and Utah (70%).
  • For the 2004 Election, California youth turnout was 45%, putting us in a 3-way tie for 22nd among the states.
  • For the 2000 Election, California youth turnout was 37%, putting us in a tie for 18th among the states.

2005 SURVEY OF 2,366 GRADUATING SENIORS WHO HAD COMPLETED 12TH GRADE US GOVERNMENT COURSE (Mills College, Joseph Kahne)

  • 86% want to help others
  • 50% don’t know what the Supreme Court does
  • 47% agree: “Being actively involved in state and local issues is my responsibility.”
  • 43% don’t know who California’s US Senators are (from a list)
  • 41% agree: “In order to be patriotic, one must be involved in civic and political life of the country.”
  • 33% agree: “I trust the people in the government to do what is right for the country.”
  • 28% agree: “I think that people in government care about what people like me and my family need.”

FIELD POLL, NOVEMBER 1, 2004

  • 67% of likely voters before the November2004 election thought it likely that problems would occur at the polls that could call into question the Presidential Election results
  • 18% of voters – nearly 1 in 5 --- indicate they have little confidence that the declared winner will have won fairly.
  • “Citizens over age 60 are almost twice as likely (76%) to register to vote as those age 18-24 (42%).” –Field