DECLARE YOURSELF HAILS NEW HAMPSHIRE YOUTH TURNOUT AND SETS RECORD VOTER REGISTRATION PACE

Nonpartisan young voter organization sees more involvement, less cynicism

MANCHESTER, NH (January 9, 2008) – Declare Yourself, a leading national nonpartisan, nonprofit youth voter organization, today hailed the unprecedented participation of 18-29-year-olds in the New Hampshire primary and confirmed its own fast-growing rate of youth voter registrations around the country.

“The record New Hampshire youth voting shows the Iowa caucuses are not an anomaly,” said Marc Morgenstern, Executive Director of Declare Yourself. “We are witnessing a historic shift in young voter participation sparked by the candidates, the times, and new social activism by young people.”

Figures released this morning (Source: CIRCLE) confirm that 37% of eligible voters under 30 years old voted in the New Hampshire primary, compared to 18% in 2004 and 28% in 2000. According to exit poll information (Edison-Mitofsky), more than 72,000 young people voted in New Hampshire—a record. Additional polling (CNN) found that that a larger number of voters under 30 cast a ballot than did older voters in their 30's or over 65. Youth turnout was aided by New Hampshire’s election day registration process.

Declare Yourself, founded by television pioneer Norman Lear, further confirmed that it has registered more than a quarter-million young people for the 2008 elections using Declare Yourself’s simple, online registration form. This milestone puts Declare Yourself well on its way to doubling its 1.2 million registrations completed in 2004.

The 50-state online form, which takes less than two minutes to fill out, is available on DeclareYourself.com and dozens of affiliated sites, including MySpace.com/declareyourself, Yahoo.com, Indecision2008.com, and Facebook.com.

“Young people tell us they finally think they can make a difference because the candidates are actually listening to them,” added Morgenstern. “Cynicism about the political process is being replaced by an exciting new level of involvement.”

Declare Yourself registered 1.2 million young voters in the 2004 campaign, helping raise participation from 18-to-25-year-olds by 11 percent over the 2000 election. Still, in 2004, only 47 percent of 18-to-25-year-old citizens voted, compared to 66 percent of citizens over 25.

About Declare Yourself

Declare Yourself is a national nonpartisan, nonprofit campaign to empower and encourage every eligible 18-29-year-old in America to register and vote in the presidential primaries and 2008 presidential election. Using the power of strategic media partnerships, celebrity spokespeople, the sports arena, and most importantly, mobile and Internet technology, Declare Yourself's campaign blankets the landscape of popular culture, as well as universities and high schools, with a simple, clear message: REGISTER and VOTE!

For the 2008 primary season and general election, Declare Yourself is enlisting an unprecedented array of partners including Cricket Wireless, Yahoo!, MySpace, Google, UWIRE, Good Magazine, Clear Channel, Comedy Central, American Eagle Outfitters, Harper Collins, Starbucks, and Voto Latino. Easy registration is available through www.declareyourself.com or by texting VOTE to 55355 on your mobile phone.

#     #     #