California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber recently announced the launch of the 2021 California University and College Ballot Bowl: Registration Rumble ahead of the 2021 California Gubernatorial Recall Election.

The Ballot Bowl is a friendly competition hosted by the California Students Vote Project, where all major institutions of higher education in California, including the California Community College (CCC), California State University (CSU), University of California (UC), the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU) systems are invited to compete to register the most students to vote.

“As an educator, I understand the great potential of California’s students to lead, to be active and to be engaged,” said Secretary Weber. “It is incumbent on public servants to ensure that student voices are heard when decisions are made and to foster a culture of civic engagement in California’s youth. I look forward to honoring the winners and champion of the 2021 Ballot Bowl competition.”

When the Secretary of State’s office kicked off the inaugural California University and College Ballot Bowl in 2018, nearly 11,000 students registered to vote, almost double the number of students who registered to vote during all of 2014. The 2020 Ballot Bowl built on this success and saw a staggering 82,000 students register to vote, an increase of over 300 percent in compared to the prior Presidential Election in 2016.

CSU, UC, CCC and AICCU campuses will be competing against other campuses within their respective higher education institution in two categories: 1) the largest number of students registered to vote and 2) the largest percentage of the student body registered to vote.

There will be a total of nine winners, including one overall champion that registered the most students to vote among all of the systems. The competition ends on Election Day, Sept. 14.

The Ballot Bowl was developed by the California Students Vote Project, a project of the California Secretary of State in partnership with the California Lieutenant Governor and a coalition of nonprofit organizations that aims to increase civic engagement and voter participation among California University and college students.

To visit the California Students Vote Project page, go to: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/castudentsvote/

Results are tracked throughout the competition and are updated three times a week at: https://caballotbowl.sos.ca.gov/