Dear County and District Superintendents, Charter School Administrators, and High School Principals:

High School Voter Education Weeks (April 20-30, 2020)

As we approach the 2020 General Election in November, it is important to ensure that our students are learning to become active and engaged participants in our democracy. It is never too early to motivate our students to get involved. We encourage your school to participate in High School Voter Education Weeks on April 20-30, to put our young people on the path to a lifetime of civic engagement and voting.

There are many ways that your students can participate through distance learning. It is easier now than ever to get sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds civically engaged through pre-registration. Once pre-registered, they will automatically become active voters on their eighteenth birthday.

Pre-registration for sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds has been a huge success in California, with close to 500,000 pre-registrations since the program launched in September 2016.

The Secretary of State’s office can provide resources and county elections officials can serve as partners to make it easy for schools to participate.

Here are some ideas and online resources to help you:

• To learn more about pre-registration in California, please visit: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/high-school-programs/#prereg.
• Encourage eligible students to visit https://registertovote.ca.gov/ to register or pre-register to vote. Include the link in online communication with parents and on the school website.
  
• Urge administrators, students, and parents to visit the Secretary of State’s High School and Youth Initiatives web page portal that includes important information about voter registration and pre-registration, the Student Mock Election, the Student Poll Worker program, and High School Voter Education Weeks: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/high-school-programs/.
• Review the High School Voter Education Weeks section of the web portal, which provides an opportunity for high schools and students to partner with county elections officials to promote civic education and foster an environment that cultivates lifelong voters and active citizens.

By working together, we can educate and encourage our young citizens to register to vote and turn out at the polls to ensure their voices are heard in 2020 and beyond.

If you have any questions about High School Voter Education Weeks or other civic engagement opportunities, please feel free to contact Paula Ritter, Associate Governmental Program Analyst, Elections Division, California Secretary of State, at pritter@sos.ca.gov, or Pete Callas, Education Administrator, [Note the preceding contact information is no longer valid] the High School Innovations and Initiatives Office, California Department of Education, at (916) 322-6368 or pcallas@cde.ca.gov. [Note: contact the High School Innovations and Initiatives Office at (916) 319-0893 or HSIIO@cde.ca.gov.]

Sincerely,

Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction

Alex Padilla
California Secretary of State

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