“Run for president! We need you!” shouted a woman from the Las Vegas crowd at former first lady Michelle Obama’s voting registration campaign, according to an article from the Guardian. While this woman echoes feelings among millions of Americans across the nation, Obama has assured her fans that she has no intention of running for president. The world’s most admired woman admits to Time Magazine that she has “never had the passion for politics. I just happened to be married to somebody who has the passion for politics, and he drugged me kicking and screaming into the arena.”
In her post-White House life, however, Obama has taken on the ongoing issue of civic participation and low voter turnout among young people specifically.
In July 2018, Obama launched a pro-voting campaign as a part of When We AllVote, a nonprofitand nonpartisan organization aimed at increasing voter turnout among the younger demographic of Americans. The initiative initially began with co-chairs Michelle Obama, Tom Hanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Janelle Monae, Chris Paul, Faith Hill, and Tim McGraw.The organization’s stated mission is to increase voter participation in elections as well as close the race and age voting gap. It aims to accomplish this by changing the culture around voting, harnessing grassroots energy, and through strategic partnerships to reach every American. “Voting is bigger than any one issue, candidate or party, and the more people that participate, the stronger we are as a country,” Kyle Lierman, the CEO of When We All Vote, said in an article by Mashable.
Courtesy: Elle Magazine
When We All Vote organized 2,500 local voter registration events across the country,engaged 200 million Americans online about the significance of voting, and texted nearly four million voters the resources to register and get out to vote. In the upcoming election, Millennials and Gen Z will have the largest combined voice. Thus, with less than a year until the 2020 general election, it is more imperative than ever for young people to get out to the polls.
In a promotional video reported by Elle Magazine, Obama told viewers, “Last year… Millions of new voters made their voices heard for the first time. Now the stakes are even higher and we are looking to you. Our country—our democracy—is counting on you.” Obama then took to social media earlier this month to announce that she has increased her voting squad of celebrities and activists. This all-star lineup includes singerSelena Gomez, soccer star Megan Rapinoe, actresses Tracee Ellis Ross and Kerry Washington, as well as executive television producer Shonda Rhimes.
Courtesy: When We All Vote
Together, Obama’s voting squad aims to empower young voters of all backgrounds across the nation to organize voting squads of their own and mobilize their friends, families, classmates and local communities to get registered and ready to vote.
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