TFN President Kathy Miller Statement on Election Results: Rise of Young Voters in Texas

The vast sea of young voters in Texas is finally stirring. We just sent out the following press release on today’s elections in Texas.

TFN PRESIDENT KATHY MILLER STATEMENT ON ELECTION RESULTS TONIGHT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 6, 2018

AUSTIN – Texas Freedom Network President Kathy Miller has the following statement on tonight’s election results in Texas:

“Regardless of the final tallies tonight, the turnout among young Texans in this election sends a powerful message. A vast sea of young voters under the age of 30 is finally stirring. These new voters and the many more who will follow in coming elections are younger, more diverse and more progressive than Texas has ever seen. Going forward, politicians who ignore this rising and very diverse generation of Texans do so at their own peril.”

A national exit poll showed that voters under 30 broke for Democrat Beto O’Rourke over Republican Senator Ted Cruz by a margin of 71-29 percent. In addition, 22 percent of voters overall said they were casting a ballot for the first time. They broke for O’Rourke 52-45 percent.

The Texas Freedom Network’s Texas Rising program, which has a presence on 20 college and university campuses, has been engaged in intensive voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts for Texans ages 18-29 in communities across the state. Preliminary data suggest that early and absentee voting among this age group increased by more than 500 percent, more than any other age group, between 2014 and this year.

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Texas Freedom Network is a grassroots organization of religious and community leaders who support religious freedom and individual liberties. Texas Rising, sponsored by TFN, brings together young, diverse, politically engaged activists working to build a grassroots movement for Texans under 30 through community organizing, electoral politics and public policy advocacy.