Pre-Registration
If you will turn 18 by election day, you can pre-register to vote. Check out this state-by-state guide to pre-registration.
Read MoreGet Out And | Vote
See above for easy to use resources to verify if you are registered to vote, register to vote and vote by absentee ballot. Check out special pre-registration resources below for teens who will turn 18 by election day. You also can check out a state-by-state guide to voting resources. Share with the eligible voters in your life.
More Information
For more information, check out this state-by-state guide to voting and registering to vote
Read MoreGet Out And | Volunteer
Here are some practical and easy ways to get involved with getting out the vote and protecting the vote.
Search out volunteer opportunities with local GOTV organizations
Many communities have great local organizations like Cleveland Votes and Mobilize the Vote 2020 working to get out the vote. Search on-line and sign up to volunteer for mobile phone banks, literature drops and more.
Sign-up to be a Poll Worker
Poll workers are essential to protecting and enabling voting. In 2020, counties all over the country are struggling to find poll workers to work on election day due to the health concerns of poll workers, many of whom are senior citizens and at high risk from COVID-19. In many counties, teens over the age of 17 can volunteer as poll workers and help fill the need. In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, students from over 35 high schools are participating. Search on-line to see if your community needs poll workers, and sign-up to volunteer.
Cuyahoga County Poll Workers
Distribute "Vote By Mail Coach" Videos
An awesome citizen volunteer, Brad Brown, has created step-by-step instructional "Vote By Mail Coach" videos on how to vote by mail. These videos are perfect for seniors and others in your life who have never voted by mail before and are intimidated by the process. Sharing the videos with voters who need the extra help is one of the easiest ways to make a difference. There is a great video for Ohio voters and videos for other swing states will be forthcoming.
Vote By Mail Coach Videos
Donate to a Get Out the Vote Organization
Donate to one or more of the non-profit organizations helping to get out the vote.
When We All Vote RockTheVote.org the Indivisible Project Vote.org
Write Postcards to Voters
Sign-up now to write friendly, handwritten reminders to targeted voters to remind them to vote. Postcard kits are available through MomsRising and Postcards to Voters:
Use Social Media to Encourage Voting
Social media is a powerful tool to encourage people to turnout to vote. Share your own story of registering to vote or volunteering to get out the vote. Reach out to others on social media to confirm they are registered to vote. Share posts encouraging voting. When We All Vote has a great collection of shareable posts for you to post on Instagram and other social media. A Band of Voters has templates for stickers, banners, social media content and more. Campus Election Engagement Project has a great collection of memes to share.
Know Your Voting Rights #partytothepolls Resources Social Media Toolkit
Petition to Restore the Voting Rights Act and End Voter Suppression
Petition your Senators to support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which will help address the gerrymandering, unclear voter ID laws, purging of voter rolls and closing of polling locations that are impacting access to the ballot box.
Rock the Vote
Visibly Share Your Support for Voting
Wear clothing and other merchandise that promotes getting out the vote.
Start a My School Votes Program at Your School
Start a get out the vote program at your school with help with When We All Vote, which provides training and tools.
When We All Vote
Teens | Get Inspired
People have fought and died to ensure that we have the right to vote in America. If you are looking for inspiration to get personally involved in getting out the vote, check out the resources below and recommend others to contact@teensgetoutthevote.com
All In: The Fight for Democracy, the Documentary
This documentary examines the often overlooked, yet insidious issue of voter suppression in the United States. With the perspective of Stacey Abrams, the documentary offers an insider's look into laws and barriers to voting that threaten the basic rights of U.S. citizens.
All In Documentary
READ CONGRESSMAN JOHN LEWIS' FINAL ESSAY
Congressman John Lewis, the civil rights leader who died on July 17, 2020, wrote an essay shortly before his death, which was published in the New York Times on the day of his funeral, in which he calls on all Americans to work together to redeem the soul of our nation through democracy and non-violence.
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Read Suffrage at 100
To mark the anniversary of the 19th Amendment, the New York Times published Suffage at 100, a collection of stories of how women won the right to vote in the United States.
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Us Kids, the Documentary
Us Kids is a rousing documentary chronicling the teenage activists behind the March For Our Lives movement founded by survivors of the Parkland shooting.
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Watch the Documentary Film, Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook
Narrated by Jeffrey Wright, this powerful documentary will spark important conversations about voting rights and the state of our democracy. It’s a great way to get people interested in volunteering.
Read More
Read March by John Lewis
March is the award-winning, #1 bestselling graphic novel trilogy recounting Congressman John Lewis’ life in the Civil Rights Movement, including his efforts to protect voting rights.
Purchase at Amazon.comWatch and Share GOTV Videos
There are lots of fun ways to get people thinking about voting, including these videos.
Listen to Vote! The Podcast
The executive directors of Vote.org and Spread The Vote answer voting questions with activists, politicians, and your favorite celebrities on this podcast.
ListenAbout Us
Teens Get Out the Vote was created by Thomas Smyers, a senior at Shaker Heights High School in Ohio. Thomas was inspired by two of his heroes, Congressman John Lewis and his grandfather Steve Minter, who marched together across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Alabama for voting rights in 1965. With the recent passing of Congressman Lewis and his grandfather, Thomas believes the torch has been passed to his generation, which must foster democracy by ensuring the right to vote in America.
Our Contacts
To make recommendations on additional resources or for more information about Teens Get Out the Vote, please contact us.