Benson unveils online portal to increase Michigan youth voting and election engagement

BY JON KING, MICHIGAN ADVANCE

MICHIGAN—With the goal of increasing voting among Michigan’s youngest voters, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson helped hold a mock election Monday at Crestwood High School in Dearborn Heights to help celebrate Michigan’s first-ever Voter Preregistration Week.

Benson, a Democrat, also used her visit to unveil a new online Mock Election Portal, which includes a step-by-step guide for students wishing to host a mock election at their school, various sample ballots and other election-related resources.

“This resource kit will show local elected leaders and communities how they can host mock elections at their schools or with young people anywhere throughout the state,” said Benson. “I know together with the Michigan Department of Education, we’re working to get these resources and information about voter preregistration to every school district in the state.”

Under a new state law in effect this year, 16- and 17-year- old Michigan residents can preregister to vote online, by mail, or automatically at a Secretary of State’s office when applying for a Graduated Driver’s License.

To help emphasize the new law, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer proclaimed the week of Sept. 8, 2024, as Voter Preregistration Week.

“Our democracy is strongest when every eligible citizen can make their voices heard at the ballot box,” said Whitmer. “This system allows future voters to take proactive action and empowers our kids to become more civically engaged, helping us build a stronger democracy for every Michigander.”

Historically, younger voters have been underrepresented at the polls, with Benson noting that while Michigan had the nation’s highest youth voter turnout in 2022, it was just 37%. Additionally, while more than 1.36 million Michiganders 18 to 29 were registered to vote in 2022, only about 556,000 actually cast a ballot. Benson hopes the Mock Election Portal will help serve as a way to close that gap.

“I think it’s really eye-opening to see the vast majority of our young people who aren’t voting are actually registered, and so translating those registrations into action is key for everyone to think about,” she said. And we hope this is one way in which people can experience the power of the vote in a way that is front and center for them in their daily lives, and then see the power of voting on a number of offices on the ballot in any election, as well.”

Benson said while it may seem counterintuitive, what she has seen firsthand hosting mock elections across the state is that even if students are voting for something as innocuous as their favorite snack food, it does translate into more students at the ballot box.

“We’ve seen that every single time as students come into these sessions thinking, ‘Does my vote, my voice really matter?’ and then not just realizing that it does, but realizing that voting is something to celebrate and to do as a community and have fun with. And that’s what these mock elections can really demonstrate,” she said.

Benson said she hoped to see teachers, principals, and all educational leaders use the online portal to host mock elections in their communities and exponentially expand the opportunities for young people to experience the power of voting.

One of those leaders who already stepped up to do exactly that was Crestwood Public Schools Superintendent Youssef Mosallam, whose district hosted Benson and Monday’s mock election.

“Too often, our students may feel that their single vote does not count, but we have been pushing the issue that every vote matters, every vote counts, especially in local elections,” he said. “Preregistration is another avenue to ensure that all of our students are part of this great democratic value, a value that so many of our students’ families who came to this country, came here for the reason that they can have a say in representation in the government.”

Benson said that despite stereotypes of disengaged youth, in hosting youth roundtables across the state her department has seen the opposite.

“What we’ve seen universally is an incredible amount of engagement and energy around young people wanting to be a part of defining their future,” said Benson, who believes that where there is a disconnection, it’s between what young voters want to change and the political process that allows for that change to occur.

“Whether it’s a healthier climate, safer schools, or other types of issues that are important to young people, I think mock elections like this, I found and I’ve seen useful in drawing that connection,“ she said. “We want young people to take their energy, their investment in the future, and help them see that government, investing in government, and engaging in the voting process is an important way to be a part of defining your future.”

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This coverage was republished from Michigan Advance pursuant to a Creative Commons license.