Reilly O’Neill, Reporter
@RONeillCourant
Calling all seniors and juniors who will be turning 18 by November of 2016! Today at lunch the League of Women Voters in New Canaan set up tables with laptops and forms to encourage students to enroll in a party in order to vote in the primary on Tuesday April 26.
The League comes to the high school once a year to get students involved and encourage them to participate in the voting process. Their goal is to increase participation of young people and give everyone in town an equal chance to vote.
For New Canaan town Voting Registrar George Cody, it is exciting to see that young members of the community are interested in participating in politics. “I’m pleased with the number of students that come out. The growing interest of young people has encouraged everyone, certainly the candidates. This [voting]is something everyone should do,” he said.
The deadline for registering to vote online is today, April 21, so be sure to do that ASAP. If you miss the deadline you can go to Town Hall to register with the Registrar or clerk by Monday April 25 at noon.
In order to vote in Monday’s primary, you must be enrolled in a party. Connecticut has a closed primary, meaning that in order to vote for a candidate from a certain party, you have to be affiliated with said party.
According to senior Louly Kaplan, seniors are beginning to understand the importance of voting, especially in the year of a presidential election. “[Voting] is a privilege, so I’m going to exercise that privilege,” Louly said.
For senior Katarina Moor, voting is an important part of impacting the society she lives in. “It’s my future, especially now that I’m going to college, and I want to be a part of determining that future,” she said.
