Urbana High School helped students ‘Walk to the Polls’
URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — Less than half of eligible 18 to 19-year-olds in Illinois cast a ballot in the last Presidential Election. One Urbana school worked to raise the number on Election Day.
Urbana High School partnered with the City, I-L Vote, and four other organizations to put on the Walk to the Polls event.
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At 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, students and community leaders gathered together and heard speeches about the privilege of voting. Then, they walked almost a mile from the school to the Urbana Free Library — where students could make their voices heard.
I-L Vote is a non-partisan organization that encourages voter registration in the state. Terry Maher is the head of the group, and she said she was excited to help guide young people in their first experience at the polls.
"For first time and young voters who don't have a lot of experience voting, because it can be a little intimidating" Maher said. "You know, 'What happens when you get to the polls?'"
She said she hopes this helps students continue to vote for the rest of their lives and grasp the significance of what they're doing.
"You might think, 'Well, I'm just a teen. Who cares? I don't care.' But all the laws that get passed in Congress and especially at the state level, affect you," Maher said.
As the group marched toward the Urbana Free Library, residents came out of their homes to support the movement. Parents were excited to see their kids making a difference.
"It was really important to my daughter to be involved in something to help support the voters or the people to vote in our community," parent Julie Duvall said.
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Noise from the tiger drumline filled the streets as they walked. The band volunteered to participate today, and even fought against the rain to make sure they supported their fellow students.
"I think it's really important. I know a lot of young people who are of voting age and they don't vote because they don't think their voice matters," band member Elianna Le said. "But, I think it's important to remember that it does matter and every vote counts."
Through it all, there was one strong message.
"Get out there and vote. Your vote is important," Maher said.
This is the first time Urbana has organized an event like this. Nearly everyone involved in the event said they would like to see something like this happen for every election going forward.
