By Daeyalina Moreno
On Wednesday, Feb. 12, Pueblo’s CCLC Program hosted a voter registration drive in order for young voters to participate in Arizona’s Presidential Preference Election next month; the deadline to register for the March 17 election is next Tuesday, Feb. 18.
Economics teacher and CCLC Coordinator/sponsor Mary Wallace said, “We partnered with folks who were familiar with the voting process to help us with the drive, including Mi Familia Vota and the League of Women Voters.”
In order for Pueblo students to register for the general election in November, they must be a U.S. citizen, be 18 by November 3 and have no felonies. Warriors who missed this opportunity to register will have another opportunity to register to vote in another drive in September.
“It’s important to bring a form of identification to register,” Wallace said.
Many Warriors volunteered to make today’s voter registration drive a success.
“I partnered with [credit recovery teacher] Ms. Christina Benitez,” Wallace said, “and without her wonderful help, the process of making the voting drive a reality would have been difficult.”
Benitez said, “We feel a sense of accomplishment in being able to generate an interest in the political process of voting. Our Pueblo students seemed very happy and pumped to have the opportunity to participate in the upcoming presidential election.”
Both Wallace and Benitez hope that this enthusiasm continues with our young voters, and she encourages our students to inspire their parents to vote, too—especially in the general election (Tuesday, Nov. 3).
Ms. Selina Ramirez, the leader of Mi Familia Vota and a fervid member of the group for the past four years, was present at Pueblo’s voter registration drive, along with three other members of MFV: Mr. Victor Preciado, Shania Shelby and Samantha Torres.
“We [Mi Familia Vota] really want young people to vote,” Torres said. “The youngest age group of voters is and has historically been the least active on election days. We want to change that statistic. We especially want to appeal to Hispanics, who have the lowest voter participation among all ethnicities.”
Mi Familia Vota visits Pueblo sometimes as often as twice a month, and the group has already registered many students who will be 18 by November. The number of registering students has dwindled a bit due to the high number of students who have already registered.
“Still—every new registered voter means a great deal to us and the political process,” Torres said.
She added that she and her co-workers try to reach as many prospective Latino voters to participate—even going door-to-door to educate and inform others to vote.
“We welcome any Pueblo students who are 16 or older to help us spread the word,” Torres said. “Students can earn $15 per hour, up to five hours per day, by joining our group.”
If interested, get in touch with a local Mi Familia Vota office at: mifamiliavota.org.
