Mamaroneck High School seniors take advantage of law allowing them to pre-register to vote
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Civics education took on real-world meaning for seniors at Mamaroneck High School recently as students in Joe Liberti’s Original Civic Research and Action class used National Voter Registration Day, which falls on Sept. 17, as an opportunity to register to vote.
New York state law allows citizens 16 and older to pre-register, making them automatically registered to vote when they turn 18 and are legally allowed to cast ballots.
Beginning the previous day, students in social studies classes were given the opportunity to fill out voter registration forms, which were sent to the Westchester County Board of Elections, with the help of the League of Women’s Voters.
Sitting in a classroom decorated with reminders of the importance of civic engagement, senior Max Szuchman filled out his registration form, saying “I think registering to vote is important because it’s a way to use your voice to make positive change. Voting is super important and can really have a huge difference in the country.”
Both Szuchman and his classmate Emma Post were among those in Liberti’s class who were actively encouraging their fellow seniors to register. “Studies have shown that if you get involved in the election process earlier, then you’ll continue with it for the rest of your life,” Post said.
Liberti, who teaches the four-year-long civics program in which students begin in ninth grade and continue in though their senior year, expects that up to 300 students will fill out registration forms.
He said that the course gives students the opportunity to not only learn about the roles and responsibilities of being a citizen, but to also go deeper than that. “While today they’re registering to vote, which is an important component to being an active citizen, what we’re seeing here is the first step towards long-term engagement, where students get a chance to explore issues that are important to them. It’s really an opportunity to do deep authentic civic education.”
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Voter pre-registration available to eligible high school seniors in NY
