Established in 2012, National Voter Registration Day was designed to create an annual moment when the entire nation focuses on registering citizens to exercise their most basic right - the right to vote. According to the U.S. Census data from 2020, as many as 1 in 4 eligible Americans are not registered to vote.

Every year millions of Americans find themselves unable to vote because they miss a registration deadline, don’t update their registration, or aren’t sure how to register. National Voter Registration Day wants to make sure every citizen has the opportunity to vote.

This is why LWV-Whitewater Area agreed to join with this non-partisan effort yet again on Sept. 20 to collaborate on this national event while focusing on our local communities. Our dedicated Voter Services Volunteers worked from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. that day in three areas: Whitewater, Fort Atkinson, and Delavan. We scheduled Voter Information Services tables at three public libraries, at MATC (Fort), and at the Whitewater City Market. Sadly, at the last minute, a severe unexpected thunderstorm forced us to cancel our outdoor City Market participation.

On this one day, 11 volunteers put in 28 volunteer hours and made 74 interactions with potential and actual voters! We are grateful to the following volunteers who made this possible: Midge Gill, Mary Beth Byrne, Michelle Whisner, Jean Eichmann, Pat and Darrel Logterman, Ann Bemis, Ellen Penwell, Julia Ross, Kathy Brimmer, and Eda Wilson. All would agree it was a grand success and one of the many ways we encourage informed, active participation in government and work to increase understanding of major public policy issues. Submitted by Julia Ross, Voter Services Chair