By Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul

We recently held an office lunch for our summer interns that spun into an enlightening conversation about young people and voting.

Our interns, from local high schools and from colleges throughout the state and beyond, are in a district legislative office because they want to be engaged in their government and have a say in what is going on in America today. The interns say, however, that many of their friends and classmates are confused about the voting process. Our interns told us over pizza and soft drinks that their classmates’ frequent questions include how and when to register to vote, how to find their polling places, or how to get a mail-in ballot. 

These are the reasons that we have introduced legislation that high school seniors, as part of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Social Studies, are taught the voting process. Every student should have a working understanding of voting by the time they graduate high school. The state Senate unanimously passed our bill, which is now before the Assembly Education Committee.

Instruction would detail the voter registration process, eligibility requirements, and information on how to vote. It would also provide information on the importance of voting, including the role and responsibilities of citizens as voters. School districts could collaborate with election officials to develop instructions on voting and to assist in providing students with voter preregistration or registration forms.

While we can address the mechanics of voting,  as state legislators it is disheartening to hear that many students don’t think their vote matters.

We must let everyone know that every vote matters, including our youth.

Think of it this way: When you don’t vote, you actually do vote. By withholding your vote, you are, in essence, voting to leave the important decisions that impact your future for others to make. According to the Civics Center, which sponsors voting registration drives in high schools, less than 50 percent of 18-year-olds are registered to vote in New Jersey compared to 80 percent of those age 45 and older. Four million Americans turn 18 every year, but the Civics Center estimates fewer than 50 percent are registered to vote.

At a time when young people are frustrated in their search for good jobs and affordable housing, the decision not to vote is a decision to leave their future in other people’s hands. A new law, the New Voter Empowerment Act, took effect January 1 of this year, and enables 17-year-olds in New Jersey to register to vote if they will turn 18 by the date of the general election in November each year. 

  We encourage every young person to vote. The NJ Department of State has a website,  Student Voter Registration & Voting. Also available is Monmouth County’s voting website, for information on voting. You can print a mail-in ballot to complete and mail or deliver to the Monmouth County Superintendent of Elections, 300 Halls Mill Road, Freehold.

Here are some important dates regarding voting in the upcoming November 3, 2026, General Election: October 13 - Voter registration deadline and mandated evening voter registration sent to  the Superintendent of Elections /  Offices of County Commissioners of Registration; October 21 - mailing of Sample Ballots for the General Election; October 24 - November 1 - Early Voting Period; October 27 - deadline to apply for a Mail-In Ballot to vote by Mail for the General Election; October 30 - deadline for application to receive General Election Mail-In Ballots electronically for qualified overseas civilian and military voters, and November 2, by 3:00 p.m. - deadline for in-person Mail-In Ballot applications for the General Election on November 3.

Remember, whether you’re a high school senior or a senior citizen, or somewhere in between, it is a privilege and a responsibility to vote.

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