Voting At 18 (1972)

on [Music] [Music] [Music] my name is Pat and this is me just a few months before my 18th birthday on June 30th 1971 11 million Americans between the ages of 18 and 21 suddenly became eligible to vote the 26th amendment to the Constitution joined three other which have broadened the base of our democracy the 15th [Music] Amendment the 19th Amendment the 24th Amendment and with the 26th amendment youth power became a new political force in America the first thing is to register that's what it's all about I've already called somebody at the registration office to find out how well if he called here he probably talked to me I told him what I tell everyone excuse me registration office well you can register if you'll be 18 honor before the day of the next election no no you don't need your birth certificate but if you were born in another country you do need to bring in your citizenship papers or other evidence of citizenship fine you're welcome registration requirements vary from state to state and often within a state you can find out what they are by calling your local government office I don't know get it off I don't have [Music] money a lot of important things are going on these days and most of them have to do with government when you get right down to it government is voters take the police since the police work for the local government they work for the local voters and that means when you vote you've got some say in the matter like how should they deal with the public during disturbances then there's government at the state level like shouldn't we have lower tuition at the state colleges and universities and there's national government like is space exploration worth what it costs countown we pass and a lot of things have to do with government on all the levels how are we going to rebuild the city [Applause] how are we going to solve race problems and how should the drug problem be handled and consumer protection and transportation problems and pollution [Applause] problems and War we talk about these things a lot but now we've got a chance to do something about them but we can vote only if we register states require registration sometime before an election for many states 30 days is the restricted period except for this you can register almost any time in Most states okay fine raise your right hand please do you solemnly swear or affirm that the statements you are making are true I do okay I'll fill this in and then you can sign it registering procedure varies but essentially it's just a matter of filling out forms okay fine we'll mail you a verification card in a week or 10 days he thank you mhm hi hello I read that in some places they were giving kids a rough time but I haven't heard about anybody having trouble where I live Pat's friends are registering in their home communities using their home addresses but what about students who live away from home at College what is their home address students in some college towns are a large part of the population if they vote there some of the local people are concerned that they might lose control of their own communities well well frankly this is our town I doubt very much if they'd like to have us coming into their Town telling them what to do well we don't like it here either I think they ought to vote where they live and not here well we do live here most of the year round and care what does go on in this community so why shouldn't we be able to say what we feel by voting there are other people who live here just a short length of time and not permanently and they're able to vote yes I think it's all right for students to vote it gives them a better chance to see how the government is runes in a few places registration has been difficult for students but most often new voters Like Pat Curtis have no trouble registering there's a primary coming up soon I want to register in time for that that's why we're talking a lot now about who to vote for we're trying to make up our minds a lot of people try to help you make up your mind during election campaigns I really couldn't say you've seen all this before but when it's aimed at you you have to make an effort to study the candidates and the issues [Music] much he's in favor of things like busing and it's hard to really know all you want about people who are running for election for instance how they stand on women's lib or welfare or pollution one way is to keep an eye out for the public statement candidates make what do they say about public issues voters affect public issues through the people who hold public office learning the attitudes and programs of candidates makes your vote more effective [Music] you don't have to join a political party to register or vote but you may want to if the party seems to reflect your own ideas and points of view supporting a political party allows your ideas to have more impact you see get elected see how much they promise and how much they give after they're elected that's what I'm going to be ready to vote when the time comes all of us are voting itself is very easy newspapers radio and television will tell you when to vote and if if you don't know where you can find the location of your polling place by calling your local government [Music] office first you identify Yourself by signing your name and address the election judges check the roles to make sure you're eligible I think you miss SP it there it's two apps can't have Miss now you may vote by paper bowet by voting machine or both if you use a paper ballot be careful to mark it properly put the mark in the box of your choice an improperly marked ballot will be thrown out and your vote will not be counted if you vote by Machine you'll find instructions on it there may also be a demonstration model of the machine in the polling place if you have any questions an election judge will help you you can by we're going to register and we're going to vote and we're going to have our say in the things that are going on a n