Today Governor Schwarzenegger signed a very important bill-SB 381, the Online Voter Registration Act. This bill will allow people to register online if they have a signature on file with the state DMV.

Previous attempts to register people online have always run into a problem: you couldn't do so without a signature. Attempts to get people to register via text messages or Rock The Vote's popular online voter registration tool have always involved the extra step of printing out and mailing an application or receiving a pre-filled out card in the mail to sign and return. For anyone with a California ID or driver's license, this requirement falls away.

As California Secretary of State Debra Bowen has said,

"Californians can pay bills and file their taxes online. Being able to register to vote online is the next logical step in making it easier for Californians to participate fully in their democracy."

Well said.

Why is this so important to young voters?

We move a lot. It's true. Much more so than any other group. And every time we move, we have to re-register.

We also use our computers and phones a lot. When this bill is implemented, we will be able to quickly and conveniently use that technology to register to vote online. No printers or stamps necessary.

Really, the only question will be: what's the coolest place to say you registered to vote from...?

The California Young Democrats kicked off California's Young Voter Revolution at our brand new headquarters in Stockton on a sunny Saturday morning.

A few dozen YDs showed up to get trained on peer-to-peer canvassing and pledge cards.


We were then sent out to several local hangouts-coffee shops, malls, and parks-to get young voters pledged to vote for Democrats this November.

It was a great success, with dozens of cards signed during just a few hours out in the streets. We will soon follow up with all of our new supporters and make sure they get out and vote by Election Day.

Want to help us out in the Central Valley soon? Sign up for Voting Man 2008, coming up October 10th-12th.

In case you haven't heard, there's a common intimidation factor that is used to suppress the youth vote on college campuses: tell students registering to vote at their college that doing so might cause them to lose their scholarships or financial aid, or that their parent's tax status will be jeopardized.

The New York Times recently reported on problems at Virginia Tech (which just happens to be a swing state), at which the local registrar sent out notices warning of dire consequences for registering on campus.

Well, thankfully the Sacramento Bee lays the facts out for us in an Editorial titled: "Students can vote at college addresses." They lay out the problems in Virginia:

"Too often, election officials actively discourage young people from voting. We're seeing this now, especially in battleground states.

Here's one example. Inside Higher Education has reported that in Virginia Tech University's county, a registrar issued a press release telling students that if they register to vote at their college address, their parents will no longer be able to declare them as dependents in income-tax filings, that the students could lose their scholarships and that they could lose health, auto or other insurance coverage.

None of this is true. But this county is not alone in spreading such untruths."

A 1979 Supreme Court decision affirmed a student's right to vote while away at school. Furthermore, the editorial points out that:

"The U.S. tax code explicitly allows dependents to live away from home while attending school. And students covered on their parents' health insurance plans aren't affected if they register to vote in another county or state. Financial aid has nothing to do with where a student votes.

Virginia isn't the only place this is happening. Other states and local communities make it difficult for students to vote. This stuff needs to be exposed. People everywhere should stand up for voting rights."

As we head out in the next few weeks to register voters, make sure you spread the word: Students can register, and vote, right where they go to school.