August Acceleration: PA and OH pick up the pace

More than 100,000 18-year-olds in each state remain unregistered

Our latest data from PA and OH support national headlines touting increases in youth voter registration following the changes in the Democratic presidential ticket. But more than 60% of 18-year-olds in both states remain unregistered.

This is the fifth of our 2024 Election Season weekly series of Future Voter Scorecards.

We’ll be publishing every Tuesday, drilling down to the local level to show where and how young people can make a difference when they register and vote. 

We’ll be covering the percentage of 18-year-olds who are registered and tracking changes over time. Today, we are focusing on Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Facts don’t fix themselves. It’s up to our readers to spread the word; make sure that all the young people are registered and that they get trained to help their school communities do the same. Invite them to make a difference during High School Voter Registration Week, September 23-27. Share information with educators in your network, and send them our step-by-step toolkit so they can support their students’ efforts.

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Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania made strides in August! After a summer of small month-on-month gains, 18-year-old registration rates jumped 5.4 percentage points between mid-July and mid-August to 35.6%.

While the acceleration is exciting, over 100,000 18-year-olds remain unregistered in Pennsylvania, with just 7 weeks to go before the registration deadline for the general election. And, registration rates for 18-year-olds remain more than 40 percentage points lower than the rates of those 45 years and older. 

If the pace of new registrations does not increase substantially, more than half of PA’s 18-year-olds will be unable to vote in November.

See below for detailed scorecards on 18-year-old registration rates by PA county and school districts in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

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Ohio

Just across the PA border, OH saw a similar 3.8 percentage point pop in 18-year-old registration between July and August, rising to 38.3%. Much of that gain was in Franklin County, where rates rose 6.3 percentage points from 32.4% to 38.7%.

Like in PA, nearly 100,000 18-year olds are still estimated to be unregistered – but Ohio has only 4 weeks until the registration deadline for the November election. In the last month, the rate has increased by about one percentage point per week. If that pace does not improve quickly, fewer than half of the 18-year-olds in the state will be unable to vote in November. 

What we’d like to see is students and everyone who cares about them – peers, educators, coaches, friends and family – giving them the encouragement and support they need to get through the process. This link to our online voter registration portal can help. 

In Ohio and elsewhere, we are in the final stretch, and we have a long way to go.

See below for detailed scorecards on 18-year-old registration rates by largest OH counties and school districts in Hamilton County and Cuyahoga County.