Resources for Youth-Led Voter Mobilization

Did you know most voters can cast their ballot prior to Election Day? Join this day of action and celebration and empower your friends and neighbors to vote early this year. When you vote early, you ensure that busy schedules, Election Day lines, or last minute problems won’t stop you from sharing your voice!

Voting is something to celebrate. This year, WWAV bringing our communities, culture, and power straight to the ballot box with our biggest Party at the Polls yet. Find a party near you.

Voting will eventually become one of the ways teenagers can participate in civic life, but it doesn't have to be the first. Civic engagement can be smaller or more personal. It can mean volunteering at a community event, reporting a story that matters to other peers, or simply learning how a local decision may affect the people around you.

"If we want to preserve our democracy, this election is a maximum point of leverage to act. And that means doing all we can now to impact it by knocking on doors, making phone calls, sending letters and postcards, texting our friends and asking others to do the same, supporting grassroots efforts in key states and districts.

Pollsters talk about “the margin of error,” which means their projections aren’t cast in stone. Organizers talk about the “margin of effort,” which is what happens when enough ordinary people join a campaign and reach out to others. The more each of us can become part of that margin, the better our chances."

YSA, with funding from AmeriCorps, will award grants of $2,000 to support development of new Youth Councils or expansion of existing ones. Grantees will organize a citywide or statewide Youth Leadership Summit on/around MLK Day – and ongoing opportunities for youth voice, leadership, and decision-making through The Civic Season (Juneteenth-July 4th) – that engage a minimum of 200 youth and adults to make a commitment to service.

YSA, with funding from AmeriCorps, will award grants of $1,000 - $10,000 to promote MLK Day of Service in their community and engage multiple sites and organize a single large or multiple smaller MLK Day service projects/events. Grantees will be expected to engage a minimum of 100 youth volunteers for each $1,000 of funding on/around MLK Day in youth-designed and youth-led service projects that meet an immediate need in their local community.

Friday, October 30 at 12:00pm Eastern

New America’s Political Reform program, Democracy Notes, and Campus Compact will host a webinar, exploring how community colleges are charting the future of American civic engagement. Hear from leaders at the forefront at this work and explore what their experiences can teach us about building a stronger and more participatory democracy.

Voting and elections are an essential part of democracy. Keep up with election news, study the history and process of elections, learn about voting rights, and engage in classroom debates with these videos, teaching tips, and activity suggestions. Encourage your students to think critically about local and national issues and create media voicing their ideas and perspectives.

Find out all you need to know about elections in 2026. Have questions about voter registration deadlines, requesting absentee or mail-in ballots, or how to vote in-person during early voting or on Election Day? Call or text 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer.

The Voter Protection Advocate Network provides a nationwide online training program designed to equip canvassers, volunteers, and trusted community validators with the tools and confidence to protect every voter's right to participate in our democracy.

As colleges and universities prepare for the upcoming fall semester and the 2026 midterm elections, ACE has released an updated issue brief: Voting and College Political Campaign Related- Activities in America's 250th Year.

The Scenario Planning and Rapid Response Guide for college campuses, created by the SLSV Coalition, walks users through a series of steps and guiding questions to help campus vote coordinators adjust their nonpartisan electoral engagement action plans to account for unexpected challenges and opportunities that would force them to alter planned strategies and tactics. This resource can be used to plan ahead for potential scenarios, or as guidance for rapid response as scenarios arise.

This is a is a series of articles from young leaders that brings their voices to the forefront, including:

• Why Volunteerism Matters More Than We Think for Youth Civic Engagement
• Heard, Not Herded: The Case For A Student-Politician Partnership, Built Locally
• Curfews Without Consultation: Why Cities Govern Youth Without Governing With Us
• Thinking About the Future Shouldn't Mean Leaving Home: Why Talent Retention and Quality Jobs are Civic Engagement Issues

More than 100 NC A&T and UNCG students marched to the polls Thursday to mark the start of early voting. The demonstration came after election officials rejected requests to reopen on-campus voting sites. The line extended outside the building. Student organizer Xavier Jones said he hopes the turnout sends a message to election officials: "We will come and make our voices clear, no matter how far you push a polling site off of our campus... we will organize. We will march."