Tennessee Sees Nearly 200,000 New Voter Registrants Ahead of Deadline: Youth Surge Stands Out

Ahead of Monday’s registration deadline for the 2024 election cycle, 190,000 new voters have registered in Tennessee. This surge in new registrants reflects a continued trend of heightened voter engagement in major election years, with a notable increase in youth participation. Data analyzed from January 2024 through mid-September 2024 highlights a bright spot for Tennessee’s voter registration numbers. However, the ongoing challenges of low voter turnout and engagement remain, as the state continues to rank among the lowest in the nation when it comes to overall voter participation and registration. A Look Back: Comparing New Voter Registrations Since 2018 Tennessee’s voter registration efforts have seen fluctuations in recent years. The number of new registrants by mid-September in each election cycle tells the story of growing civic participation: 2024: 190,000 2022: 120,000 2020: 230,000 (a record-breaking year for registrations) 2018: 130,000 While the 2020 election cycle remains a high-point for voter registration (driven by a nationwide increase in voter engagement and registration), 2024’s 190,000 new registrants surpasses the numbers from both 2022 and 2018. This marks a 58% increase from 2022 and a 46% increase from the last midterm cycle in 2018. In 2022, Tennessee’s voter registration rate was 67.4%, below...