Setting up a Kids Voting Program to Increase Civic Participation

Kids Voting USA is a non-profit, nonpartisan, grassroots organization working with schools and communities to enhance civics education and provide youth with a voting experience at official polls on Election Day. By implementing a Kids Voting program, students learn about the voting process and civic responsibility, and will more likely become informed and civic-minded adults who will take an active role in the democratic process.

The goal of Kids Voting USA is to foster civic awareness at an early age to deal with the problems of voter apathy and nonparticipation.

Across the United States, communities with Kids Voting programs have seen a 7 to 10 percent increase in voter turnout. A 1999 study conducted by Mercer University determined that students who participate in Kids Voting activities in school are 12 to 19 percent more likely to register and vote when they reach 18 than students who did not attend schools that had Kids Voting programs. Also, researchers at Stanford University and Arizona State University have found that students leave the Kids Voting program better informed on issues and candidates than many adult voters, and a "trickle up" effect exists as students influence the voting decisions and habits of their parents or guardians.