Today is National Voter Registration Day and in addition to urging you to check your registration advocates are making the case for lowering the voting age.

While typically less attention is paid to voting in off-year elections, there are still ballots in many localities, and in some of those Marylanders as young as 16 can vote.

Five cities in Maryland allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local elections. In November, voters in Rockville can participate in a nonbinding referendum on lowering the voting age to 16.

Alyssa Canty, director of youth programs for Common Cause, said young people are often beginning to see the effects of civic policy.

"When they're 16- or 17-year-olds, they are starting their first part-time jobs," Canty pointed out. "So they now have income, so they're purchasing things, so they are paying sales tax, but they have no say in what happens to those tax dollars."

At the state level, any Marylander can register at age 16 but cannot vote in state or federal elections until they reach 18.

Maryland state law permits city councils to lower the voting age at the local level, and so far Takoma Park, Greenbelt, Hyattsville, Riverdale Park and Mount Rainier have done so. In Somerset, 16-year-olds will be able to vote in local elections beginning next May.

Canty sees late high school as a good time to engage young people.

"Usually around 16, 17 years old, that junior, senior year of high school, that's also when you take your really in-depth civics class, and you learn about how the government works," Canty explained. "It's almost like experimental learning where you get to actually go and cast a ballot."

Canty noted as campaigns have spread across the country, they often see young people taking the lead on the issue.

"We have seen where young people are energized by this issue," Canty pointed out. "In many places, they're the ones that are on the forefront leading this work because they see themselves as being really impacted by local elections, by their school boards, by their city councils."

For more information on the effort, visit Vote16USA.org.


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Texas lawmakers will return to Austin on July 21 for a special legislative session called by Gov. Greg Abbott.

The 18 items on the agenda include redrawing congressional maps. Redistricting usually occurs every 10 years, following the census, but Abbott added the item to the agenda after the Department of Justice drew attention to four Democratic seats.

Christina Sanders, founder of the nonprofit PoliChic Engagement Fund, said Texas maps are already caught up in litigation.

"Some of the court cases that are still even pending from the maps that have not been drawn fairly and the potential impact of new maps in the middle of a census cycle," Sanders explained.

The Biden administration sued Texas, alleging the state's legislative and congressional district maps discriminate against Latino and Black voters. The Justice Department, under President Donald Trump, withdrew from the lawsuit earlier this year.

The seats targeted by the Justice Department are held by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, and Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas. They are also focused on the vacant seat previously held by late Congressman Sylvester Turner. Following the 2023 legislative session, Abbott called four special sessions to pass a school voucher bill, which failed.

Sanders feels Abbott is using special sessions to push personal agendas.

"A special session would be for something like the flood that just occurred," Sanders argued. "It would be something that there is an emergency -- something immediate needs to happen at this moment -- because this policy for the state cannot wait."

Flood warning systems and communication are also on the agenda, along with hemp and THC legislation and changes to the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness test.

With the Independence Day holiday weekend here, North Dakotans might be out at parades, fireworks shows and barbecues. However, new polling indicates that many Americans are struggling to feel optimistic about the state of the country.

A new Gallup survey shows 58% of U.S. adults say they're proud to be an American. While there are some partisan splits, the overall percentage is a record low for the annual poll question.

Barbara Headrick, president of the League of Women Voters of North Dakota, said it's not surprising, given the sharp divides between the two major parties. But she feels there's something else at play.

"There is still an after effect, I believe, from the pandemic from that separation from each other that we had," she said.

That the pandemic was so politicized is another complicating factor that prevented the country from healing, Headrick said, adding that it's understandable some Americans are very concerned about various rights being taken away. However, she noted the U.S. has deep flaws throughout its history, and there are still many more rights afforded today than in past decades.

If heated rhetoric clouding U.S. politics has got you down, Headrick said, you can still show American pride through actions.

"Find a way to love your country by making it better," she said.

Headrick said it can involve showing support for civil workers or volunteering at a local homeless or animal shelter. She added that expressing pride through elections doesn't just involve voting, noting that there are opportunities to stay informed about how your local government is addressing pressing issues, such as affordable housing.


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A new Indiana law, starting today, allows school board candidates to list their political affiliation on the ballot.

Candidates may choose to register with a political party, as independents or not disclose any affiliation. Those who do not select will have a blank space next to their name and straight-ticket voting will not apply to school board races. Those opposed to the new law said it injects unnecessary politics into a role traditionally focused on education.

Leslie Jacobs, a school board member for the Fayette County School Corporation in Connersville, is against the new law.

"In my 10 years, I couldn't tell you the political leanings of anybody on my board. Never comes up," Jacobs explained. "Our discussions are purely about educational opportunities, picking a superintendent, looking at budget."

She warned requiring party labels might discourage qualified candidates from running. Supporters of the new law said it increases transparency.

Jennifer Blackburn, a school board member for the East Allen County Schools near Fort Wayne, also opposes the new law.

"The scenario that there are four candidates potentially running and three are Democrat, one is a Republican -- this last school board election -- none of us were opposed," Blackburn pointed out. "As big as our county is, there are not a lot of people running."

The law will first affect school board elections in November.


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