39% of unmarried women eligible to vote have not registered

[Fumesucker]

http://www.voterparticipation.org/the-rising-american-electorate/

39 percent of unmarried women who are eligible are not registered, representing 28 percent of all unregistered citizens
51 percent of young people between 18 and 29 who are eligible are not registered, representing 31 percent of all unregistered citizens
37 percent of African Americans who are eligible are not registered, representing 12 percent of all unregistered citizens
48 percent of Latinos who are eligible are not registered, representing 12 percent of all unregistered citizens.

[gopiscrap]

1. That's insane

there needs to be a major effort to do some registration. In 2004 I registered 1,800 people

[1StrongBlackMan]

2. It would seem ...

the DNC and anyone claiming to want change would see these numbers and organize a massive registration drive ... with special attention paid to gerrymandered House districts and every purple district.

It's great to register and turn out the vote in blue districts; but that doesn't/won't maintain seats and flip the house.

I live in a purplish district in Arizona ... a district where Barber (Dem) won by 1,402-vote margin (out of more than 300,000). I am currently planning a Candidate's Night that will be co-sponsored by an African-American interest organization, a Hispanic interest Organization and an economic justice interest organization. The focus being 3 under-represented segments of the population wanting to hear what the politicians have to say about addressing our issues. Along with the Candidate Night, I am working to have each group bring as many unregistered voters as possible, so they can get registered.

To be honest, the problem I'm facing reminds me of the words of a dear, and recently departed friend ... "Imagine what could be accomplished if no one wanted the credit." I am footing the bill, personally and out of my pocket, but the organizations are fighting over who will get top billing, who will moderate, etc.

[Fumesucker]

5. It's revealing just how little interest there is regarding this topic on DU

While multiple threads about Sports Illustrated get hundreds and hundreds of spittle drenched posts.

Really puts me off posting substantive OPs in GD, they almost always drop like a lead filled snowshoe.

But I've written about that problem before.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024353051

[1StrongBlackMan]

29. It's becoming more and more clear ...

that winning elections is not what a sizable segment of DU is about ... It's more about airing one's grievances, some valid, some (IMO)imagined, and proving one's liberal/progressive metal by bashing expressing righteous indignation towards our President and the Democratic Party, in general.

But it is what it is, despite protestations to the contrary.

You and I disagree on a lot (but mainly tactics); but I have no doubt that we seek to end up in the same political place ... others, I have my doubts ... and the way to get there, as your initial post speaks to, is to create more Democratic voters; particularly, in the gerrymandered and purplish districts.

Get Out The Democratic Vote in 2014 and beyond.

[Fumesucker]

38. I posted this the day after Obama's first Inaugural

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=280x49419

Note my comment in the second reply..

Of course DU is full of trolling, I have yet to find a political site online that isn't and I've done my share of trolling too, more other places than on DU but I'll cop to trolling here sometimes but I try not to be vicious about it.

The single most important thing I've learned in my time online is that it's all but impossible to be unambiguously understood by everyone no matter how well you craft your message. The larger your audience the greater the likelihood you are going to be misunderstood by someone and there is quite a big audience on DU.

[Blue_Tires]

42. +1

[Ms. Toad]

50. I've been avoiding even opening this thread -

Because the title made it look to me as if it was some variation of the gender wars (focusing on unmarried women - as opposed to a general article about voting).

[Fumesucker]

53. It's easy to tell by the number of replies

If this was a gender war OP it would have four hundred replies by now, substantive OPs almost never get that sort of response.

If you haven't watched the video I urge you to do so, it's Gail Zappa, Frank's widow and it's quite obvious why Frank loved her.

[Ms. Toad]

54. I was just explaining why I had not opened it before now

I have been avoiding opening many threads which seem to be part of the gender wars by title (and some of those recently have also had remarkable few responses - and been locked very quickly). I only opened this one because it survived longer without being locked (and without receiving hundreds of replies). I see at least one other person in this thread had a similar response to the title.

If I get a chance I'll watch the video.

[bettyellen]

47. Thank you for doing that! I know exactly how thankless

It can feel when people around you seem more concerned about their egos than the results. It can be pretty exhausting. I learned you really just got to print up those fliers without showing everybody or the edits and squabbling never end. Ha!

[El_Johns]

3. Those are huge, and mostly likely D voters. Interesting.

[Fumesucker]

6. Yes, single women are D voters if you can get them registered and to the polls

As are the other groups mentioned in the OP.

But we have more important things to fight about here in GD.

[RobertEarl]

4. They have no personal reason to vote

It is a failure of our party that they don't vote.

There is one thing that were we to ever really take credit for it might give them a reason. And that is the fact that Democrats are the Peace party.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024557574

[Victor_c3]

25. True and good point

We need to give them a reason to vote, just like fox news gives the right leaning groups reasons to get excited and turn out to vote for their causes.

[RobertEarl]

48. PARTY!!

One youngster claimed the reason young don't get involved is because we old folks say it's a PARTY, but we don't PARTY!! That we are actually kind of boring.

Faux, like you say, gets them excited.

[myrna minx]

7. We need better GOTV efforts. I didn't realize these numbers were so dismal.

[Fumesucker]

8. You can see how popular this topic is

[Chorophyll]

9. Kick

[leftynyc]

10. A kick for a topic

that is actually important and not the bullshit that clogs up GD every single day.

[Coyotl]

11. This is the most important OP I have seen on DU in years.

Therein lies the blueprint to finally dumping the Republicans in the Trash Heap of Bad History.

[HappyMe]

12. Wow.

I had no idea the numbers were that high. I think I should pass this on to the local Dem office.

[maddezmom]

13. Nor did I

The numbers are unbelievable. Yikes we have a lot of work to do in GOTV.

[HappyMe]

17. It's amazing that they don't think

it's important to register and vote.

I'm hoping that by passing this info on, a registration drive can be organized.

[MadrasT]

14. K&R

GOTV!!!

[Mr Dixon]

15. Just A question

My only questions would be are these women the working poor and just unable to get off work to vote!

[yeoman6987]

28. This is just registration

The numbers who vote are worse. The numbers above are just the numbers who fill out the form. These are terrible numbers.

[Harmony Blue]

16. This thread will not receive many recs

because telling women that they can control their own destiny is taboo on DU.

Shaming men accomplishes nothing when the majority of voters are women and many more women sit out elections. I know many women under the age of 29 (I am 31) that do NOT vote not just young men which is why I always receive flack when I say both men and women need to step up to the plate. Especially women, because they are the largest voting bloc now.

[bettyellen]

30. Way to go, appealing to women voters!

Not really.
It's disappointing on a national level how Dems have not made preserving women's reproductive rights a huge priority. It feels like they gave up on young women a while ago.

[G_j]

18. time to change that

[HappyMe]

31. You would think that that

right there would be reason enough for them to register and vote.

[Sheldon Cooper]

19. The Democrats need to start giving women in that age group something to actually

vote FOR. In state after state, our right to bodily autonomy is being eviscerated. Where are the Democrats in all this? Afraid to piss off the teabaggers and religious right. I don't see much in the way of decisive action from our leaders. If they would actually stand for something they may get people to the polls.

And despite your snide comments, sexist garbage like the SI threads being not only permitted but endorsed on this, a supposedly DEMOCRATIC website, do nothing to help the cause.

[Fumesucker]

21. I posted this thread at 9:49 last night, by this morning it had three replies and 2 recs

Not snide at all, just commenting on what is and is not popular here.

I've written an OP about that subject before.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024353051

[gollygee]

22. Disagreement is always more popular than agreement here

topics where people here disagree always get more replies, and the more disagreement there is, the more replies they get.

[Fumesucker]

24. Did you look at the link I put in the post you replied to?

[Sheldon Cooper]

23. Sorry, I saw "spittle-drenched posts" and assumed it was snide.

Wasn't sure how else to interpret that.

[redqueen]

33. The fact that this issue is being used as a bludgeon speaks volumes. nt

[bettyellen]

35. It does. Voter registration is huge for me and this OP comes off as a swipe

I don't see any self reflection on why we are alienating young women. Do you?

[redqueen]

36. None at all - about women or the other groups mentioned.

It is utterly, disgustingly transparent.

[gollygee]

44. Also, I think unmarried men have a similarly low registration and voting rate

however they don't vote for Democrats at the rate of women so I assume that's why their numbers aren't listed here.

[redqueen]

46. The information in post 43 indicates that you are correct re:. % of unregistered single men.

I agree with your reasoning re: why the number isn't even mentioned.

[Fumesucker]

45. You may think you know my opinions, you might be mistaken though

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=653280

http://sync.democraticunderground.com/1002653589#post1

[bettyellen]

55. Fair enough, but I think DU can reflect a bit on how alienating- or unwlecoming it is to women

some times, and think about how that mirrors the party. At some point in the last twenty years we have become an afterthought. Even though we still support Dems much stronger than men do in the voting booth- when it really counts.

I can't tell you how depressing it is to see a lot of our rights eroding without much of a challenge at all in many areas. That women's involvement is decreasing should not be a shock. We deserve better.

[WillyT]

20. K & R !!!

[Laelth]

26. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[shrike]

27. You'd be surprised how many people do not register to vote because they do not want to be called

for jury duty. Seriously

[RockaFowler]

52. Except they changed that in most states

They can call you based upon your Driver's License now - not just voter's registration

[redqueen]

32. So many people are uninvested, hopeless, cynical, etc.

I'm surprised to see that quote from Zappa.

I'm much more familiar with this one:

"The illusion of freedom will continue as long as it's profitable to continue the illusion. At the point where the illusion becomes too expensive to maintain, they will just take down the scenery, they will pull back the curtains, they will move the tables and chairs out of the way and you will see the brick wall at the back of the theater."

So often paired with this one from Twain:

"If voting made any difference they wouldn't let us do it."

If I had a dime for every twenty-something toocoolforpolitics type who regurgitated that crap I'd be filthy rich.


The poor and oppressed are often at their limit just surviving so I don't fault them.

[HappyMe]

39. All of those people on that list

have a great deal at stake. They need to wake up, get registered and vote.

[redqueen]

40. And you're saying this to me because... ? Do you think I don't know?

What were the responses like the last time you went canvassing?

Go on and tell them that they "need to wake up" and let me know how that goes for you.

[HappyMe]

41. The last time I went out

door to door, the response was pretty positive. I was passing out brochures for a woman that was running for a local office. She won.

I'm not going to bother telling anybody to wake up. If they can't see for themselves what's at stake then I can't help them. I have forwarded the info in the OP to a couple of local Dem leaders asking that they should take a look at having a registration drive.

[bettyellen]

34. Locally I tried to organize voter registration for the last two big (local) elections

Because it's my thing, and I have largely given up on meetings where people argue about each other's wants and needs instead of getting shit done. Ain't got time for that. I asked if they were doing any, or wanted me to organize if they'd just put out an email or something for volunteers.
I was told it wasn't part of their plan.
Their plan consisted of giving me a sheet of 500-700 people to call in a one day period. Stupid.

[MicaelS]

37. All politics is personal.

Many ordinary people ask themselves "What has Congress done for me lately?" And too often the answer is "Nothing". Congress is too interested in placating small and large businesses, Wall Street, Defense Contractors, and the Defense Department. And trying to interfere in countries on the other side of the planet.

Look how much trouble getting ACA passed entailed. And we should have had NHC 70 years ago. And the next fight will be over raising the minimum wage.

[muriel_volestrangler]

43. I think they've got the African American figure wrong

Figures are available here: https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/socdemo/voting/publications/p20/2012/tables.html

Table 2 (Black alone) says 73.1% of African American US citizens (all ages) were registered, so 27% were unregistered, not 37%. That's better than the all races figure, which is 71.2%, and the 'white alone' figure of 71.9% (though marginally below the white non-Hispanic figure of 73.7%). And voting rates are close to white in congressional elections, and were higher in the last 2 presidential elections (an effect of President Obama, I guess):



It's Asian and Hispanic people who aren't voting as much:


Also, from Table 9: 65% of unmarried women are registered; 56% of unmarried men.

[Lunacee_2013]

49. Way too many of those (or us) with little to no power vote.

I'll never really understand why. I asked one of my friends, who just happens to be unmarried and female, why and she said "it's pointless, there is no difference between the parties and besides, our votes don't count, they choose our reps for us". Sometimes I can see her point, but to just completely give up isn't going to fix anything.

[Jamastiene]

51. There would be lots of Democratic Party voters out of that bunch,

if only there was a way to get them to register and then vote.

[Blue_Tires]

56. Too many people buy into the

"with millions of votes, what difference will mine make?" -talking point