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Lee este artículo en español.

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Convinced of the importance that the government must reflect the values of the “calentón generation” and that suffrage is a human right, a group of organizations, mainly led by young people, is promoting the “Prende tu Voto” campaign to encourage people between the ages of 18 and 35 to register as voters and participate in the general elections on November 5.

“We need to bet on our youth and we need to bet that the electoral participation of young people will transform the conversation on the issues that are being seen in the country’s politics, because we are the generation that will take the reins of the country, eventually, if they do not keep pushing us and keep taking us out”, said Kari Claudio Betancourt, director of La Tejedora, an entity that seeks to empower the leadership of young people and that is part of the coalition.

According to the statistical analysis of the 2020 elections, of the 597,003 eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 34, only 280,275 (47%) exercised their right to vote.

Among the values it attributes to this generation, Claudio Betancourt mentioned recognizing the existence and effects of climate change, as well as the recognition of human rights, LGBTIQ+ people and racial and economic justice.

La Tejedora, 9 Millones, Mentes Puertorriqueñas en Acción, True Self Foundation, Pública Espacio, the Center for Creative Economy, Plataforma Eje and the Yabucoa School of Political and Community Leadership are participating in the initiative.

The campaign kicked off with an event held Wednesday at Pública Espacio Cultural in Santurce, which brought together dozens of people for a conversation on the importance of the youth vote and artistic presentations by artists Hery con H and Janice Maisonet.

During the dialogue -led by Eunice Ortiz, of Mentes Puertorriqueñas en Acción, and Natalie Caraballo, of Vota Fácil-, they discussed the struggles that led to the right to vote, how political changes happen slowly, the consistent low voter turnout, the distrust in the electoral system and even what is gained and lost when one decides to go out or not to vote.

“What happens when we don’t vote? Well, that there are some groups that are organized, that are going to go out to vote no matter what. So, when we don’t go out to vote, what we are doing is making it viable to perpetuate the status quo,” said Caraballo, during the conversation, in which the participants’ positions on the importance of active participation in democratic processes were heard.

At the launching of the campaign, representatives of the organizations explained their reasons for joining this effort. One of them was Cristian Martínez Medina, founder of La Escuela de Liderazgo Político y Comunitario de Yabucoa, an anti-racist project.

“When we analyze historically, black and racialized communities have not had access to participate in public life in the same way. Today, that we enjoy that access, we have to promote it so that, within the realities that black communities live in Puerto Rico, they can use their vote, use the tools, not only the vote, this is one of many political tools, to be able to express themselves,” he said.

The campaign will be mainly focused on social media (Instagram, TikTok and prendetuvotopr.com), but will also include community outreach initiatives and visits to schools and universities, as well as cultural events, such as the one held on Wednesday.

“We are going to end with a concert, near the vicinity of the State Elections Commission (CEE) in San Juan, so that there will be a final push for them to register and enter the concert with their electoral card,” Claudio Betancourt communicated about the event, which will be held on Saturday, September 7, just two weeks before the close of voter registration.

As of Wednesday at 7:00 p.m., the total number of registered voters was 52,687 and the number of reactivations was 46,364, according to figures provided by the CEE.

Pública Espacio Cultural also joined this effort, which will focus on contributing to the production of the closing of the campaign. Its executive director, Naíma Rodríguez, said that the youth vote “is vital”. “Participation is very necessary, especially because it is necessary to listen to their demands and needs. Through this vote, a lot is said”, she said.

During the visits to academic institutions and communities, they will inform about the requirements, necessary documents and methods to register as voters, which includes the Electronic Voter Registration (eRE) platform.

“We know it is a tedious process because they ask for a lot of papers, a lot of documents of evidence of address, Social Security, birth certificate. People are not going to be taking those papers to school or college every day, but if we take a little time to explain what documents are needed and then return to help them in the process, well, I think it will be an effective way to register thousands of young people,” explained Claudio Betancourt.

He mentioned that they requested the CEE to accompany them in these visits and in the September event with their rolling Registration Board. Although they have not yet obtained a response to their proposal, they hope that it can be materialized.

“This campaign is basically so that we can build the country that we deserve as young people, as the ‘generation of the ‘calentón’, as is the subtext of the ‘Prende tu Voto’ campaign, because we believe in our ability to stay, in our ability that young people who have left, can return and live a dignified life in Puerto Rico,” said Claudio Betancourt.

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This content was translated from Spanish to English using artificial intelligence and was reviewed by an editor before being published.