National nonprofit wants to know what's on Gen Z's mind, get them registered to vote in Wisconsin

This week, as dozens of University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee students raced to classes or to grab a bite of food from the Student Union, organizers from DoSomething pulled them aside to ask a critical question:

Are you registered to vote?

Accompanied by a DJ Shawna-curated soundtrack, DoSomething staff members Rohan Gupta and Elena Callahan dolled out vote pins, candy and other giveaways for students who strolled past their table.

The voter registration event is part of a series of events that the national nonprofit organization will host in Wisconsin.

The two days of programming were paired with a "Wisco Soundoff Storybooth," where young voters were encouraged to share about the policy issues that matter most to them leading up to the 2024 Presidential Election.

"We are really giving young people an opportunity, a platform, to have their stories heard," Gupta said.

Founded in 1993, DoSomething.org was created to guide young people to volunteering, organizing activism and fundraising opportunities.

Some students apprehensively approached the storybooth mic stand on Tuesday and Wednesday, stating that they were still unsure who they were voting for in November or weren't informed enough to offer insight.

Others enthusiastically made their way to the voting table to detail their policy priorities on issues like student loan debt, access to abortion and criminal justice.

Following each storybooth event, DoSomething funnels quotes and perspectives shared by students into their National Youth Agenda, a collection of Gen Z political perspectives that will be shared with lawmakers.

"We know young people aren't as passionate about candidates as they are about issues," said DeNora Getachew, chief executive of DoSomething.

About 8% of all registered voters in Wisconsin are Gen Z, U.S. Census Bureau data shows.

But of all the 18-year-olds in Milwaukee, less than 5% were registered to vote ahead of the midterm elections, according to September 2022 data published by the Civics Center.

What are the top political issues for young people in Milwaukee?

Some of the issues currently highlighted on DoSomething's National Youth Agenda page are eliminating violence in schools and neighborhoods, accessible education, sustainability, mental health resources and belonging.

The Journal Sentinel spoke to several storybooth participants who shared similar concerns.

For Abel Castro, issues like the criminalization of drug usage are top of mind for him heading into November. He told the Journal Sentinel that he wishes that the general public and policymakers made a more diligent effort to look out for community members struggling with addiction.

"People don't look out for drug addicts and other things and they don't have resources to prevent people from doing crime," he said.

In the presidential race, Evian Vongphakdy, 20, is planning to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, over former president Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, in November.

Vongphakdy said he is most passionate about the protection of women's rights and issues impacting communities of color. Additionally, as a student, he hopes that Harris can address economic issues impacting middle and lower-class voters.

"I'd love to see prices of groceries, housing, we've got school loans and other loans, that we've got to push down," he said.

Adriyanna Armstrong, 20, also plans to vote for Harris, even though there are areas in which she would like to hear clearer policy plans from the vice president.

Armstrong said she cares deeply about issues impacting the Black community like reproductive health care and discrimination.

"Especially what happened ... with Marcellus Williams, like how would you prevent that from happening on a larger scale," Armstrong said.

Williams, a 55-year-old Black man, was executed by the state of Missouri for the 1998 murder of Lisha Gayle despite evidence suggesting his innocence and pleas from the prosecutor and Gayle's family to spare his life. Wisconsin was the first state to abolish the death penalty in 1853.

DoSomething organizers said they hope that by allowing young people to speak about the issues they care about most, they will be encouraged to participate in civic action and political dialogue in their communities.

DoSomething will have another voter registration event called "Show Up for Wisconsin" from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday at the YWCA Southeast Wisconsin in downtown Milwaukee. It will feature celebrity guests including "The Chi" actor Luke James and Ashley Everett, former dance captain for Beyoncé.

"This is one step in that multi-step effort to get young people that they will pledge to vote and then actually get them to turn out to vote," Getachew said.

"We've been successful in doing that over the last several election cycles, and our goal in doing it on the ground is for them to hear from their peers about what's at stake."

Editor's note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly added a space in the name of the nonprofit. The group's name is DoSomething.

Tamia Fowlkes is a Public Investigator reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact her at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: DoSomething nonprofit registers Gen Z voters at UWM for fall election