Jersey City, N.J. – September 21, 2020 – Saint Peter’s University and the Guarini Institute for Government and Leadership today announced that the University will host the 2020 New Jersey Ballot Bowl Kick-Off Celebration virtually on Voter Registration Day – Tuesday, September 22 at 11:00 a.m. The New Jersey Ballot Bowl is an annual statewide non-partisan voter registration competition that is overseen by the New Jersey Department of State and led by and for students across the state. The kick-off celebration will feature a keynote address from Secretary of State Tahesha Way as well as commentary from New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and a special guest appearance from a member of the New York Giants. The day also marks an important day in Saint Peter’s history as it is the 55th anniversary of a visit from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“Our students and the Saint Peter’s community are incredibly excited to have been selected for the prestigious honor of hosting this year’s New Jersey Ballot Bowl Kick-Off Celebration,” said Ginger Gold Schnitzer, J.D., executive director of the Guarini Institute for Government and Leadership at Saint Peter’s University. “While Constitution Day and Voter Registration Day regularly serve as important dates on the University’s calendar, the Ballot Bowl celebration has sparked a new level of energy and engagement for our students.”
A core mission of the New Jersey Department of State is to promote civic engagement through voting. The Department wants to ensure that everyone who is qualified to vote is encouraged and unencumbered in casting their ballot. The New Jersey Ballot Bowl was designed to engage students at campuses across the state to compete against one another to register the most students to vote. The competition will begin at the kick-off celebration and will continue until the voter registration deadline of October 13.
“In light of the ongoing pandemic, voter registration activities may look a bit different than those in the past, but we are confident that all of the participating institutions will find creative ways to get potential voters registered and engaged online,” said Way. “If any group knows how to use the internet to accomplish its goals it is the generation of current college students.”
In order to participate in the New Jersey Ballot Bowl Kick-Off Celebration, register online, contact the Department of State at (609) 777-0884 or email to BallotBowl@sos.nj.gov. In addition to Saint Peter’s, the New Jersey colleges and universities participating in this year’s Ballot Bowl include Atlantic Cape Community College, Bergen Community College, Berkeley College, Caldwell University, Centenary University, Drew University, Mercer County Community College, Middlesex County College, Monmouth University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Passaic County Community College, Pillar College, Princeton University, Rider University, Rowan University, Rutgers-Camden, Rutgers-Newark, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Saint Elizabeth’s University, Seton Hall University, Stockton University, Sussex County Community College, The College of New Jersey and William Paterson University.
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Saint Peter’s University, inspired by its Jesuit, Catholic identity, commitment to individual attention and grounding in the liberal arts, educates a diverse community of learners in undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and professional programs to excel intellectually, lead ethically, serve compassionately and promote justice in our ever-changing urban and global environment. To learn more, please visit www.saintpeters.edu.