There’s much more we have to do than just vote, but voting is a crucial first step. When enough of us stand together our vote can be, and is, more powerful than the gun lobby’s corrupt money. Click the buttons below to register to vote or check your registration. Then, hit the streets with us and organize for a safer, more just future.
Even if you think you’re registered, take a moment to check to make sure! Between the last two election cycles, 19 million Americans were purged from the voter rolls. Or maybe you registered where you go to school but now you’re at home, or you moved since you last registered. Whatever the case, double check your registration and make sure you’re ready to vote this cycle.
Voting for the first time? Moved and need to re-register? It’s a breeze to register to vote, and only takes about 2 minutes. Register below and make sure your voice is heard.
Once you’ve registered to vote or ensured your registration is still accurate, it’s time to organize your classmates, friends, and neighbors to register—and to start holding our leaders’ feet to the fire. If you’re ready to join the movement, sign up to organize with us.
Whether this is your first time voting or your 20th, we all have questions sometimes about the process. We’ve tried to answer most of the frequently asked questions below, but if you have a question that isn’t answered, tweet at us, and we’ll do our best to answer you! If you don’t get a response from us, reach out to your local election official, which can be found with a quick search.
Confirm you’re registered or register to vote. You can do that at the top of this page!
Locate your polling place. Gotta know where to go to vote. You can do that here.
What time are you voting? Add it to your calendar!
How are you getting there? Do you need a ride? What train or bus?
Find out what’s on your ballot with your local election official or website, and make your choices beforehand. Most states allow you to bring a paper copy of your notes.
Wear that sticker with pride, and tag us on social media.
Depends on the state. Check out this tool from Rock The Vote for more comprehensive details about your state.
Due to the changing nature of mail-in voting, we recommend you stay up to date with your local election officials. Whether you have a disability, a busy schedule on election day, or are out of town, mail-in voting is a safe and helpful alternative.
Both voting in person and voting by mail have a long history of trustworthiness in the US.
Voter Fraud is Extremely Rare Across Voting Methods Each voter’s identity and voting eligibility are verified before their ballot is counted. Oregon, the first state to adopt a vote-by-mail system, has averaged fewer than one case of fraud per year for two decades (source: Heritage Foundation). Claims of voter fraud are investigated by authorities and can result in criminal charges.
History and Expansion of Voting by Mail Americans have been voting by mail since the Civil War when President Abraham Lincoln wanted to give soldiers a way to vote from the battlefield. US troops overseas routinely vote by mail, and several states now hold their elections almost entirely by mail.
Mail Ballots are Resistant to Fraud Mail ballots require extra steps for validation after they’re returned by the voter, such as signature matching and ballot tracking. Once validated, the ballot is separated from its envelope and sorted for counting. Mail ballots that meet eligibility and validity requirements are counted in every election.
Verification at the Polling Location Poll books at in-person voting sites say which voters have already received mail ballots. If there are any issues or irregularities, voters are usually offered a provisional ballot that requires additional verification. If a voter submits more than one mail ballot or tries to vote in person after already voting by mail, only one ballot will be counted.
Source: Bipartisan Policy Center
The voter registration age requirement varies by state, but most states allow individuals who will be 18 by the next election to register to vote. Some states have a minimum age requirement to register to vote (for example, you may have to be 17 ½ years of age). Check out the Rock the Vote Election Center for your state’s voter registration eligibility requirements. People over 18 make decisions that affect students’ lives around the country. We MUST vote for candidates that value human lives over NRA donations.
It depends. Most states require some form of identification either when you register and/or when you vote. The rules vary state by state. As part of your plan to vote, check out your state rules at the Rock the Vote Election Center and make sure you bring what you need to vote.
YES! You have the right to register to vote at your school address – this includes a dorm room. Any student living in a dorm is entitled to the same rights as any other student. To imply otherwise is illegal. Seriously – always look up the official laws, and don’t let anyone convince you otherwise with misinformation. If you receive mail in a Post Office box, you can sign an affidavit (or, in some cases, get a letter from your college’s Residential Life office) asserting that you live at your dorm address. For more info, check out Rock The Vote’s Election Center.
Wear that sticker like a dang badge of honor. Make sure everyone around you who can vote, does vote. Know that your vote matters and that we thank you with everything we got. Our hope is that so many people show up, not just in this election but the next one and the one after that, that together we elect morally just leaders, and gun violence in America ends, working ourselves out of a job.
There are so many actions you can take now! March For Our Lives founding members included a bunch of students under 18, and continues to include leaders who are as young as elementary students. Here are a few actions to take:
If there are people in your household who are eligible to vote, make sure to send them this webpage and remind them to make their voting plan. Ask them if they have a ride to vote, have checked their registration, and know their polling place!
If you cannot vote but can drive and your friends need a ride to the polls, you may want to offer your car! Hop in, put on a great playlist, and get them to the polls.
Text your friends who are 18 and let them know it’s time to get registered to vote and make a voting plan!
Join March For Our Lives, and join our volunteer network to take action in your community! Voting isn’t the only way to change our nation, it’s only one tool we use to enact change.
Yes! You’ll need to provide an address when you register to vote – this is used to assign your voting districts and to send any election mail. Homeless registrants can list a shelter address or can include the address where they sleep most often, like a street corner or park address. Learn more about voting and homelessness from Nonprofit Vote.
If you were convicted of a felony, your voting rights may vary from state to state. Learn more here.
We encourage you to reach out to your local election official. Search for “local election official <your county here>.”
We try and answer comments sent to us on social media, email, and more, but we can’t guarantee we’ll get back to you in time.
