The North Texas Commission's free Topic: North Texas webinar series presented by Verizon dissects Voter Apathy with their very own Britton Cunningham. Although early voting begins on October 19, the data from previous years illustrates that this year's election won't drive many voters to the polls. But the bigger question is WHY? Key Insights into Voter Apathy: • Deep-dive into the millennial generation • Compare and contrast various demographics • Dissect voting trends in Texas and the U.S. • Discuss opportunities for engagement Britton Cunningham is the NTC’s Marketing Events Manager and “Millennial-In-Residence.” A Plano native, she graduated from the University of Missouri's School of Journalism, where she studied strategic communication and consumer behaviors. While at Missouri, she worked on research projects about Millennials and Gen Z and was asked to present on her findings at the International Media Conference in Seoul, South Korea as only undergraduate speaker at the event. After working in advertising as a consumer profiler, she joined the NTC team and now presents key insights into statistical data on the next generations to city councils and corporate executive teams.

1. VOTER APATHY
WHO CARES?
THE DATA BEHIND

3. Wait, am I eligible to vote?
 You are a U.S. citizen
 You are a resident of the state AND the county
where you intend to vote
 You will be at least 18 years old on election day
 You are not serving a sentence or on probation
or parole for a felony conviction
 You are a REGISTERED VOTER
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4. Who are we voting for again?
• Presidential Elections take place every 4 years
2000, 2004, 2008, 2012…
• Congressional Elections take place every 2 years
2000, 2002, 2004, 2006…
• Gubernatorial Elections take place every 4 years
2002, 2006, 2010, 2014…
• State Legislature Elections take place every 2 years
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5. What about off-year elections?
• Rarely feature any federal office and few state
offices
• Typically feature mayors and local government
positions
• Wide-variety of citizen initiatives
• State Constitutional amendments
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6. 2014 U.S. Voting-Age Population
92,251 92,251 92,251
93,032 93,032
47,593
34,658 34,658
2,332
19,933
Voting Population Reported Nonvoters Nonrespondents Noncitizens
TOTAL POPULATION
239.9 MILLION
CITIZEN POPULATION
219.9 MILLION
REGISTERED POPULATION
142.2 MILLION
38.5%VOTED
41.9%VOTED
64.9%VOTED
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7. Presidential vs. Congressional
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
U.S. VOTING PERCENTAGES FOR CITIZEN POPULATION
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8. Presidential vs. Congressional
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
TEXAS VOTING PERCENTAGES FOR VOTING-AGE POPULATION
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9. Off Year Voter Turnout
16.2
8.5
5.5
8.4 6.7 5.6
9.3
13.8
6.3 5.8 3.8
6.1
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
TEXAS VOTING PERCENTAGES FOR VOTING-AGE POPULATION
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10. Voter Turnout by Age
DATA FROM CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION YEARS
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11. Voter Turnout by Age
DATA FROM THE 2014 CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
18-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70+
No Response
Not Registered
Registered, No Vote
Voted
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12. Voter Turnout by Ethnicity
DATA FROM CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION YEARS
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13. Voter Turnout by Ethnicity
DATA FROM THE 2014 CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Hispanic White, non-
Hispanic
Black non-
Hispanic
No Response
Not Registered
Registered, No Vote
Voted

14. Voter Turnout by Gender
DATA FROM THE 2014 CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Male Female
No Response
Not Registered
Registered, No Vote
Voted

15. Voter Turnout by Education
DATA FROM THE 2014 CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
No Response
Not Registered
Registered, No Vote
Voted
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16. How do we engage more voters?
Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.
• Have a TWO-WAY conversation
• Talk on their platforms
• Be transparent
• Make it easy
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17. Questions?
Britton Cunningham
Britton@ntc-dfw.org