The midterm election will be the first since New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu signed one of the nation's strictest abortion bans, and voting rights advocates say it is one of the biggest reasons younger people plan to vote next month.

At the University of New Hampshire, Dartmouth and Plymouth State, organizers said students are increasingly asking about statewide and local races as well, and they want to know where the candidates stand on issues of LGBTQ rights and student debt relief.

Eva Ford, communications director for the New Hampshire Youth Movement, thinks older voters often assume young people are just "checked out."

"So, maybe they think that maybe the 20-something eating their avocado toast isn't paying attention to their local state rep race, but they might not know that young person would care," Ford pointed out. "That young person probably does care."

Ford added young voters are well versed in national politics, but they often struggle to find good resources on local candidates, or the time to learn about them, between the demands of work and school.

New Hampshire Youth Movement is coordinating efforts with college organizations and other voting-advocacy groups to ensure students have transportation to the polls. New Hampshire allows eligible voters to register on Election Day, but Ford noted too often, college students think they are not eligible, simply because they are from another state.

"I think that when a lot of young people turn out, they can become the mass majority pretty quickly," Ford asserted.

Ford explained a big part of her work is to make elections more accessible to young people who want to engage with their community, even if it is only their temporary home until graduation.

Other groups are working to get young, like-minded candidates onto the ballot.

Matt Mooshian, advocacy and engagement director for the group 603 Forward, which provides free training to younger people on how to run an effective political campaign, said his organization has trained more than 300 candidates and helped more than 100 win office.

"I think that young people are ready for new leadership who is going to take the issues that matter most to our generation seriously," Mooshian contended. "And is going to address them in an urgent manner."

More than 80 young candidates are on next month's statewide ballot, including some running for county office, sheriff and state representative seats. Mooshian said his group is also encouraging young people to make a plan for where, when and how they will vote on Election Day.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.

In Ohio, the upcoming elections could have a significant effect on public education.

Educators are urging voters to consider how the candidates' policies could shape the future of schools, including everything from how schools are funded to ensuring access to a well-rounded education for all students.

Scott DiMauro, president of the Ohio Education Association, emphasized the importance of participation in this election.

"Virtually every aspect of educators' lives is affected, one way or another, by decisions that either elected politicians or people that they appoint to public office make over our school system," DiMauro pointed out.

The union is stressing the need for elected officials who support public education and show respect for those who make it a career. Critics of the current system point to growing support for school choice initiatives and voucher programs, which divert funds from public schools to allow some parents to pay private-school tuition. The debate continues to shape the discourse around Ohio's education policies.

With 90% of Ohio students in public schools, DiMauro argued elected leaders should be advocates for fair funding for schools and resist efforts to limit curriculum content. He added another key topic is accountability and respect for educators. DiMauro believes supporting teachers is critical for student success.

"We have to make sure that we are attracting and we're retaining good people as educators in the classroom," DiMauro urged. "So that kids really get the kind of individual attention that they need."

He predicted the election will decide not only funding and policies but the future direction of Ohio's education system as a whole.

Nonprofit leaders from around the country gathered on Capitol Hill Tuesday, pushing for what they are calling "sweeping democracy reforms," in Georgia and nationwide.

Their focus is on advancing key legislation to secure voting rights and ballot access for all Americans. The measures include the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act, which would set national voting standards, including automatic voter registration and two weeks of early voting.

Christine Wood, co-director of a coalition called the Declaration for American Democracy, sees the need as urgent. She said voting barriers have only accelerated since the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court ruling.

"Every year, bills are introduced and passed in state legislatures that we know have a disproportionate impact specifically on communities of color," Wood pointed out. "Especially when you look at things like closing of polling places, putting restrictions on early voting or vote-by-mail."

Georgia has been at the forefront of voting access issues, with laws like 2021's Senate Bill 202, which restricts early voting and ballot drop boxes and criminalizes providing water and food to people waiting in line at polling places.

David Walrod, president of the Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, also took to Capitol Hill to advocate for accessible and efficient voting processes. He said safeguarding voting rights should be a bipartisan priority. As an educator, Walrod believes being able to vote without barriers is crucial and reflects the core democratic values taught in schools.

"We recognize that one of the roles of public schools is educating students on the role of the government, and educating students about what it means to live in a democracy," Walrod explained. "Most states have some sort of a civics requirement, some sort of a government participation requirement."

The groups also are advocating for the Native American Voting Rights Act to improve voting access for tribal communities, and the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, seeking full congressional representation for the nearly 700,000 residents of Washington, D.C.


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The highly anticipated debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is tonight, and as Election Day inches closer, more attention is being placed on the role tossup states like Nevada will play.

Harris has launched an "issues" page on her campaign website, outlining a number of her policy decisions and how they differ from Project 2025, the controversial policy playbook issued by a right-wing think tank called the Heritage Foundation. While Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025, it has proved to be quite a challenge since many influential Trump loyalists and allies are behind it.

Julie Millican, vice president of Media Matters for America, said the Heritage Foundation has a proven "track record of success."

"They have consistently gotten the majority of their mandates from leadership proposals implemented by incoming Republican administrations, again going back to Reagan," Millican pointed out.

Millican noted in the first year of the Trump administration, the Heritage Foundation touted more than two-thirds of their mandates were enacted under Trump. She emphasized it speaks to why Project 2025 has to be taken seriously, which would revamp or completely eliminate certain federal agencies such as the Department of Education and the National Weather Service.

The debate will be hosted by ABC and will start at 6 p.m. PT.

Millican considers Project 2025 to be what she calls "expansive and extreme," which she said can lead voters to feel overwhelmed. In her perspective, Project 2025 boils down to an agenda of wanting control over many aspects of everyday life.

"There are strict definitions of who it is that can be married," Millican outlined. "There are strict definitions about what women's role is, which is primarily just to have children and raise children, and outside of that they don't have a lot of other worth."

Millican encouraged voters to contrast Project 2025's proposals with their own personal values as it can be an easier and more effective way to determine the impact the playbook could have on the things that matter most to them.


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