Voter-Registration Drive at High School

Students and staff at Barrington High School are being asked to register to vote today in the cafeteria.

Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis is running the voter-registration drive from 10:45 am to 12:15 pm. It is being coordinated through Deputy Town Clerk Merrie DeSisto of the Barrington Board of Canvassers and in partnership with the state Board of Elections and school administrators.

"Young people who register to vote are more likely to become engaged and effective citizens of Rhode Island," said Mollis. "Some of these individuals will become our next generation of leaders. Now is the time to reach out to them."

To register to vote, students must be 18 years old by Nov. 4, 2014, a resident of Rhode Island and a U.S. citizen. Students who are at least 16 years old but will not turn 18 by Election Day 2014 can pre-register to vote.

The outreach is part of Mollis' "Voters in the Classroom" initiative, which targets high school and college students. He plans to stage voter registration drives at Rhode Island high schools and colleges leading up to the 2014 elections.

His emphasis on young people reflects the success of voter-registration activities over the past few years. More than 700,000 Rhode Islanders were eligible to vote in last November's election.

"The growth in our state will come from reaching out to newly eligible groups like high school students," said Mollis.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that only 48.2 percent of eligible 18-to-24-year-old Rhode Islanders were registered to vote on Election Day 2010. Just 39.2 percent of eligible 18-to-24-year-old Rhode Islanders actually voted in that election.

Students and staff who miss the voter-registration drive can still get forms and answers to frequently asked questions by clicking here.