Number of registered younger voters in Oklahoma is declining
TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma election board records show a 40 percent decline in the number of 18-to-24-year-olds who are registered to vote and some in the age group say the reason is the registration process and that candidates fail to connect with them.
The Tulsa World reports that the number of 18-24-year-old registered voters in the state fell from about 224,000 in 2005 to about 138,000 in 2015 — while overall voter registration rose 3 percent.
Twenty-two-year-old Vanessa Sweet told the newspaper that many candidates are not connecting with the group. And 19-year-old Allison Bell said she believes more people in the group would register if there were an easier process, such as online registration.
A new law allows the Oklahoma Election Board to develop an online voter registration system starting November 1st.