Steph Curry and over 100 celebrities collaborate to drive voter registration
Voter Registration Day: Why your vote is more important than ever
Thinking about sitting out the election? Here’s why your vote matters. Register, verify your status, or request a mail-in ballot at vote.usatoday.com. Video from 2020
Tuesday is National Voter Registration Day and over 100 celebrities are sending their followers to social media to check their voter registration status.
As part of a partnership between the nonpartisan organization Vote.org and Linktree, celebrities like Olivia Rodrigo, Steph Curry and Kerry Washington are using their Linktree link in their bio to redirect users to a website where they can check the status of their local voter registration.
Celebrity initiatives have motivated people to register to vote before. Taylor Swift’s post on the 2023 national voter registration drive prompted 35,000 voter registrations, and after she endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris with a call to register following last week’s presidential debate, more than 405,000 people visited Vote.gov. Mobilizing young voters could be critical to the outcome of the 2024 election, and many young voters spend a lot of time on TikTok, a popular platform for Linktree.
According to Linktree, the group involved in the voter registration initiative has more than a billion followers in total.
More: Trump’s campaign team is selling T-shirts inspired by the Eras Tour. Swifties are calling it his “Cease & Desist Era.”
Kerry Washington and Steph Curry continue their campaign work after their appearance at the DNC
Curry had already supported Harris with a virtual appearance at the Democratic Party Convention in August. Washington, the actress who starred in the political drama “Scandal,” hosted the closing night of the convention.
“I visited Kamala (Harris) with my team at the White House last year,” Curry said at the convention. “I can tell you one thing – I knew then and I definitely know now that the Oval Office is a good fit for her. In the words of Michelle Obama: ‘Do something.’ Go vote. Be active. Let’s show up in November like never before.”
Viral gold medalists Tara Davis-Woodhall (Paris Olympics) and her husband Hunter Woodhall (Paris Paralympics) are using their social media followers to encourage people to vote.
“Voting is one of the most powerful ways to make a difference and help shape the future,” the Woodhalls said in a statement provided to USA TODAY. “We are excited to encourage first-time voters to re-register and allow everyone to verify their status and participate!”
Other notables participating in Tuesday’s voter registration drive include:
Young people could influence the 2024 elections; participation increases after racial confusion
In 2020, 48% of eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 29 turned out to vote. That’s up from 2016, when only about 40% of young people cast their ballots. Experts say young voters are likely to influence this election, which posed a problem for President Joe Biden before he dropped out of the rematch against Donald Trump, with some labeling them “double haters.”
But in the days following Biden’s exit, Vote.org saw a surge in registrations among those under 35. The partnership with Linktree is designed to maintain that trend.
“Younger voters have historically been harder to reach and activate during the election cycle,” said Lara Cohen, CEO of Linktree. “There’s something authentic about being encouraged to register to vote by your favorite creator. The same favorites that make you buy that new favorite Zara sweater for fall or watch their new series on Netflix giving up space normally devoted to their interests in the hopes of strengthening democracy is pretty incredible.”
Voters can check their registration on Vote.org.
Contributors: Karen Weintraub, Trevor Hughes.
