Tuesday, September 20 is National Voter Registration Day. In the U.S., there is no disagreement that people should register to vote, although there are many disagreements about who should be eligible to vote and how they should be registered. It appears that will not be an issue in California on Tuesday because according to the National Voter Registration Day website, there are only two events scheduled in the state.
Some of those standing around the water cooler have been accused of being cynical, so additional research was done to see if other states have more events scheduled. When some zip codes are put into the website’s search function, a map of the west coast of Africa appears. We did find three events in the state of Connecticut, but interest in organizing events appears lackluster at best.
The National Voter Registration Day website shows a group of people and organizations who appear earnest. The site has information about how to register to vote, material to use during a voter registration effort, and even has merchandise for purchase. Some of the swag is clever and includes mugs, t-shirts, and tote bags.
The website also lists many corporate sponsors along with their logos, but there is no indication that these multi-billion dollar corporations are making efforts to register their employees or customers. The website says the National Voter Registration Day has been around for only 10 years. Maybe it just needs more time to organize.
Until then, the California Secretary of State can be counted on to issue a memo to all county clerks and registrar of voters encouraging “…California’s grassroots organizations, businesses, schools, and other civically minded groups to promote the vote within their communities. Secretary Weber has issued a resolution detailing the importance of participating in this national event.”
The resolution ends with: with “RESOLVED, that I, Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D., recognize September 20, 2022, as NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DAY and encourage all eligible Californian residents to register to vote.”