To Boost Youth Voting, Maryland State Board of Elections Creates High School Senior Voter Registration Contest

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – To increase youth participation in the democratic process, the Maryland State Board of Elections (SBE) is launching an annual statewide voter registration contest this year for Maryland high school seniors. At the end of the 2025-2026 school year, SBE will present an award to the high schools that achieve a voter registration rate of at least a 90 percent among eligible seniors.

Approximately one out of three 18 year-olds in Maryland are not registered to vote, according to a 2024 report from the Civics Center, and a national decline in youth driver’s license registrations is reducing the reach of our automatic voter registration law with motor vehicles.  With an estimated 78,000 Marylanders turning the voting age of 18 annually, SBE’s contest seeks to boost high school seniors’ participation in the democratic process as soon as they are eligible. In Maryland, 16 year-olds may register to vote and 17 year-olds may register and vote in the 2026 Primary Election, provided they will be 18 years old on or before the General Election date, Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

“No high school sports team ever won without participation by every teammate, and democracy is no different,” said Jared DeMarinis, State Administrator of the State Board of Elections. “Young Marylanders can shape the future of their country and Maryland at the ballot box only if they register to vote. Our new contest will be a fun and engaging way to ensure that today’s high school seniors win at being empowered and strengthening democracy for decades to come.”

High schools interested in participating in the competition may contact SBE at info.sbe@maryland.gov for more information. To learn how to register to vote, visit SBE’s online application page or contact your local board of elections office.

SBE is announcing the contest on National Voter Registration Day, which was created in 2012 to serve as a nationwide nonpartisan rallying point to promote voter registration and help eligible voters across the country get #VoteReady to participate in our shared democracy. More than 6 million citizens have registered to vote nationwide since as part of National Voter Registration Day efforts, including 820,000 in 2024.