HIGH SCHOOL HIGH JINKS

Failed 1980 presidential candidate John Anderson and some guy named Ray Martinez III have an op-ed column in today’s New York Times about voter registration. Like a lot of people, they are bemoaning the low voter turnout and registration among young people, the 18-24 year olds. So, they propose automatic voter registration for all high school seniors.

They fashion this idea after the 1993 Motor Voter act:

“There is precedent for us to build on. In 1993, Congress passed the National Voter Registration Act, which promoted voter registration at motor vehicle and social service agencies. A recent survey by the federal Election Assistance Commission measured steady increases in voter registration since passage of the law. “

Minor difference, though – OK, major difference. As they say, but make no effort to point out, the Motor Voter act “…promote[s] voter registration at motor vehicle and social service agencies.”, it isn’t automatic.

“But, Mike (you’re asking yourself), this sounds like a great idea. We need to get these kids INVOLVED. Our democracy depends on people voting!” Hey, Jack and Ray said the same thing:

“Of course, voter registration is no guarantee of turnout, but it is the first — and often, most difficult —step. There is perhaps no better place to begin this critical task than our high schools. By improving our registration and education efforts, we will not only help protect the voting preferences of younger Americans but the long-term vitality of our participatory democracy. Let's not leave any voters behind.”

To that I say phooey. The uninformed vote is worse than useless, it’s counter-productive and the 18-24 year olds are the most uninformed, apathetic segment of our population. I could go on and on and bore you to tears, or you could read an excellent, funny and dead-on assessment of what I just said here.

There’s a indentured servant idea Jack-Ray mention that bothers me, too:

“Many high schools require students to fulfill a certain number of community service hours to graduate. Under our plan, that community service could include working in election offices. The hope here is that we would be training the next generation of election administrators and, equally important, providing poll workers who are comfortable with computers — a desirable qualification given our increasingly modern voting systems. “

I’m not sure what they mean by “election offices”. I don’t believe they mean political party headquarters and if they do, I’ve got even more problems. Every town or city I voted in couldn’t accommodate every graduating senior “volunteering” , there just isn’t that much to do. I may be all wet on this point, but I don’t think they thought this out too much.

Another issue that’s bound to pop up right off – what about those that don’t make it to senior year. You know, drop outs. Aren’t they being “disenfranchised”? According to the Department of Education, in 2001, over 10% of high school students dropped out. Minorities dropping out represented the largest segment of drop outs with Hispanics having a drop out rate of over 25%. (see figure 2 on the link). Do Jack and Ray see a potential “mission creep” of their plan to capture these lost voters? Either they are too ignorant or don’t want to bring it up in case it scuttles their idea.