Public participation is a key component of a healthy democracy, which is why Maryland PIRG's New Voters Project worked to engage and turn out voters in 2008.
The New Voters Project used tried and true pavement pounding in combination with new technology like text messaging to register and turn new voters out to the polls on Nov. 4, and pave the way for a lifelong commitment to voting.
On Nov. 4, in Maryland and across the country more people voted for president than ever before in our nation’s history, and the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement estimates that 2.2 million more young people voted in 2008 than in the last presidential election in 2004.
Student volunteers with the Maryland PIRG campus chapter at the University of Maryland in College Park registered more than 2,400 students to vote. Thanks in part to their hard work, the turnout at UMD was 122 percent higher than in the previous general election.
If you helped out with our election work, thanks and congratulations. Boosting voter turnout, especially among first-time voters, is key to a healthy democracy in 2009 and for years to come.
