Campaigns Search for Elusive Youth Vote - USAToday.com

Student Participation in the Iowa Caucuses -  Washington Journal, CSPAN, January 3, 2008

A Breakthrough: “ I See You Young People from PIRG Everywhere!”

In the first few months of the What’s Your Plan? campaign we had a hard time catching the attention of the candidates.  Our volunteers had a hard time getting into events to talk to the candidates and were often ignored when they raised their hands to ask their questions. 

Then, as candidates continued to see young people asking them their plans on issues important to them everywhere they went and our work to mobilize young voters on campuses caught on, the candidates began to take notice.

In fact, in the weeks leading up to the caucuses, the candidates began to recognize Iowa PIRG’s efforts.

At a local campaign stop, Senator John McCain thanked an Iowa State University student volunteer with the What’s Your Plan? Campaign for her work, announced ‘this is what America is all about,’ then asked her to explain the campaign to the audience.

At another speech in Ames, Senator Hillary Clinton, after our bright blue t-shirts appeared at her campaign events n Iowa, Washington, Colorado and Massachusetts in the span of a week, exclaimed to our volunteers – “I see you young people from PIRG everywhere!” 

In the days leading up to the caucuses, Senator Barack Obama published a column in the University of Iowa paper that referenced the number of young people asking his plans on issues such as global warming and healthcare. 

A Fight to Protect Student Voting Rights

As the campaign intensified and the caucus grew closer, the buzz on college campuses was unmistakable, even to politicos who traditionally ignored young voters.

Uncomfortable with the possibility of a large young voter turnout, some campaigns began to push back, issuing statements that questioned the ability of all Iowa students to participate on Election Day.

Iowa PIRG quickly sprang to action.  Within 48 hours, 20 student government leaders, student organizations and even the right-guard tackle for the University of Iowa signed onto a strongly-worded statement that denounced the effort at student disenfranchisement.

The furor caught the attention of several media outlets, including the New York Times and Cedar Rapids Gazette editorial boards who issued their own denouncements.

	Democrats and Journalists Should Not Advocate young Voter Disenfranchisement - December 13, 2007
	College Kids Stuffing in Iowa? - December 12, 2007
	Young Activists Furious with Clinton, Dodd - December 13, 2007
	Out of State Students Allowed to Caucus - December 7, 2008
	Students in Iowa Defend Their Right to Caucus - December 11, 2007

The outcry was successful.  Within days, all major campaigns retracted their challenges to Iowa student voting rights.

Taking it Home

In the end, months of hard work paid off.

On January 3rd, three times as many young voters turned out to vote than in 2000.  

Iowa PIRG student volunteers in college-dominated precincts reported overflowing rooms and caucuses bursting with energized young voters. 

The consensus of the local and national media was that the youth vote turned out BIG, with many outlets crediting the work of Iowa PIRG with much of the success. 

	U.S. youth are engaged in the process - February 7, 2008
	Obama Appeals to Young Voters - January 6, 2008
	Youth Vote Tripled in Iowa - January 4, 2008

 

Iowa PIRG New Voters Project Student Leaders

	Zach Moses is a 19-year-old sophomore at Iowa State University.  Born in Johnston, Iowa this January he caucused for the first time.  As a ‘Caucus Rock Star’ with Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign he worked to mobilize his peers by helping to organize events in front of the student center to stop fellow students in between classes to ask them to pledge to caucus.  He also used Facebook to organize a caucus party for his friends at a local restaurant to answer questions they had about the process, and discuss ways to mobilize young voters to turn out on January 3rd.
	Stacey Wilson is a sophomore at Drake University.   A Wisconsin native, she fell in love with Drake University and its welcoming community from her first visit. This year she worked to translate her love for the campus community into action. As a ‘caucus rock star’ with Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign, she made numerous classroom presentations to highlight the importance of youth participation at the polls/caucuses and to activate her peers.
	Ryan Crane is a 23-year-old graduate student at University of Northern Iowa. Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Ryan is an active leader who has mobilized hundreds of fellow students to pledge to caucus this January.  From leading dorm storms to organizing tabling events on campus to making class announcements, Ryan is one of the state’s top leaders in non-partisan youth voter mobilization efforts.  Since the beginning of the school year, he has also brought the concerns of young people directly to politicians, personally talking to presidential candidates about global warming, college affordability and other issues more than a dozen times.
	Allison Maze is a 18-year-old freshman at Drake University and graphic design and journalism major. Allison also caucused for the first time in 2008.  Inspired by the need to engage her peers in the political process, Maze also used Facebook to organize a ‘Caucus Coffee’ to teach her friends and fellow students about the caucus process.