Originally published from The Washington Post.
On the way to his dorm between classes at Morehouse College, freshman Daylan Moore, 18, was stopped in his tracks by a question:
“Baby, have you registered to vote?”
A bright-eyed woman, donning the royal blue and gold colors of the sorority Sigma Gamma Rho, beckoned Moore over to a sign-up table.
The group from the Fulton County elections office, wearing the colors of their Black Greek sororities, had a steady flow of registrants from the lunchtime crowd. It was hard for students to ignore the gentle nudge from women who reminded them of their mothers or aunties.
Moore quickly grabbed a form. The sociology major from Los Angeles had already registered in his home state but said he will instead use his one vote, which he plans to cast for Vice President Kamala Harris, where it could have more impact: in the swing state of Georgia.He worries about the erosion of abortion rights. He worries about the future of affirmative action.
"This is a critical election,” Moore said, standing in front of Chivers Dining Hall at the historically Black, all-male college that cohosted the registration drive.
Young voters could have a monumental impact on the election, including the deadlocked presidential contest. Nationwide, nearly 42 million 18-to-27-year-olds — the group known as Generation Z — will be eligible to vote, according to a Post analysis of 2022 census data. Nearly half are people of color.
In the seven battleground states — Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — about 7.8 million Gen Zers areeligible to vote in this fall’s election.
Some observers say colleges have become more important than in past elections, with campuses hosting more voter-registration drives, debate watch parties and panel discussions designed to urge students to vote.
Read the full article at washingtonpost.com