Governor Jerry Brown Signs Auto Registration Bill Into Law Today
October 10, 2015
Rock the Vote applauds California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) for signing a bill into law today that will automatically register eligible citizens to vote when they interact with the DMV. According to the Brennan Center, there are 6.6 million eligible but unregistered citizens in California, and this measure could dramatically boost California’s registration rate, which was ranked 38th in the country in 2012.
“Our democracy is strongest when all eligible voters are empowered to participate. Implementing automatic voter registration is an effective ways to boost participation, especially when it comes to young people across California,” ”said Rock the Vote President Ashley Spillane. “We thank Governor Brown for his leadership and bold action to increase voter participation in the state of California, and we hope other states will follow his lead in making registration and voting easier for young people.”
The results from a statewide survey, released by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) in June of this year, found that 69% of California adults favor registering all eligible citizens to vote when they go to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).
California is the third state in the country to pass automatic registration and the second state to enact it. This law simplifies the registration process by putting the onus on the government to register eligible voters. California is the largest state to adopt automatic voter registration.
In March of this year, Oregon became the first state to enact automatic voter registration, and the New Jersey’s legislature passed a bill this past June that Gov. Chris Christie has yet to sign.
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About Rock the Vote
Rock the Vote is the largest non-profit and non-partisan organization in the
United States building the political power of young people. Fusing pop culture,
politics, and technology, Rock the Vote works to mobilize the millennial voting
bloc and the youth vote, protect voting rights, and advocate for an electoral
process and voting system that works for the 21st century electorate. Since
1990, Rock the Vote has revolutionized the use of pop culture, music, art and
technology to inspire political activity. Now, for almost 25 years, Rock the
Vote has pioneered ways to make voting easier by simplifying and demystifying
voter registration and elections for young adults.
Rock the Vote has run the largest voter registration drives for young people on
record during the past six Presidential elections. In 2008 and 2012, our
on-the-ground efforts, online organizing, and cutting-edge tools and
technologies made us the largest non-partisan voter engagement campaign in the
nation. All of these efforts have resulted in Rock the Vote processing nearly
seven million voter registrations, bringing millions more to the polls, and
becoming a trusted resource for young people, government agencies, and
technological innovators passionate about political discourse and engagement.
See more information here.