In 2018, the City of Greenbelt voted to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local elections. Following that change, there were outreach efforts to teenagers, including a table with voting information and registration forms in the cafeteria at Eleanor Roosevelt High School (ERHS) that was staffed by members of Greenbelt’s Youth Advisory Committee and the Prince George’s County branch of the League of Women Voters (see the October 17, 2018 issue). In the 2019 city election, the first to allow teens under 18 to participate, 142 under-18 residents registered to vote and 16 voted. However, in 2023, only two teens under 18 voted. How come?
As a 16-year-old in Greenbelt, I asked my classmates about teen voting, and many did not know that they could vote. Seventeen-year-old Greenbelt resident Cecilia Hass said, “When I was applying for my learner’s permit, there was an option to apply for [voting].” I realized many of my peers have yet to get their learner’s permit. With that in mind, if many teens don’t have their permit yet, how will they know that they can also register to vote?
This fall, before the city election, I created a flyer and small handouts that provide information on how to vote. I placed the flyers around the city. I partnered with Robert Goldberg-Strassler and the Greenbelt News Review to spread the word. Over several days, Goldberg-Strassler and other Greenbelt residents distributed handouts at the Spellman Overpass to students heading home from ERHS. The handouts had QR codes with information in English and Spanish on how to register. The News Review provided a table for voter registration at its October 9 Candidate Forum and printed an article about teen voting. On October 3, Greenbelt hosted Salsa y Salsa, a Hispanic Heritage and voter engagement event at Springhill Lake Recreation Center. At the event, there was a table to register Greenbelt citizen and noncitizen residents to vote in the city council election.
These actions helped. City Manager Josué Salmerón said that several residents registered to vote at the Salsa y Salsa event, including teens under 18. City Clerk Bonita Anderson said that students walked to the Municipal Building after school to register to vote.
The Greenbelt 2025 city election showed a dramatic increase in teen voting compared to the last city election, with 32 teens under 18 who participated. Voting reports show that 16- and 17-year-old Greenbelt residents voted at all five precincts, participated in early voting and even registered to vote on Election Day. Poll workers said that it was a celebration for many of these new voters. They would applaud and recognize these teens for taking part.
Seventeen-year-old Cecilia Hass voted in this year’s election by early voting at the Community Center. Hass said that she found her voting experience very easy. “Teen voting is a great way to do our part, and have a voice,” she said. ERHS 11th grader and Greenbelt resident Danzson Celdran-Taylor also had a very good experience voting in this year’s election. He said that he felt that his views were being heard and that he would vote in the next city election. He said, “It’s important that more young people get into local politics because it’s the stuff that affects them the most.”
Due to the results of this year’s teen voter registration, there has been a 15-fold increase in under-18s voting. These results are very encouraging. However, the work toward increasing voter turnout has not stopped. I, and others in the community, will continue to get the word out and work toward increasing teen voting in our city. The young people of Greenbelt are so affected by the decisions of our city government that it’s important that they have a voice. Once you are 16, you can register online to vote by visiting voterservices.elections.maryland.gov.
