• Press Release

**MEDIA ADVISORY**Youth Vote Faces Fresh Assault in Multiple States in 2012

Millions of Americans could be denied the chance to vote this November due to an onslaught of new voting restrictions in several states, and a national press briefing on February 29th at 1 pm will highlight the acute risk young voters face of being disenfranchised this fall. On Wednesday, Rock the Vote will be joined by students from Florida, Wisconsin and New Hampshire to map out which states and laws pose the greatest threat to young voters registering and casting ballots in the 2012 cycle – including restrictions on early voting and voter registration, burdensome voter ID requirements, and prohibitive residency requirements – and what they are doing to fight back.

The press call comes on the eve of a hearing in front of a federal judge in Florida on a state law that Rock the Vote and other civic groups filed suit to block in December. Enacted late last year, the controversial law imposes burdensome and confusing administrative requirements, punishing deadlines for submitting completed forms and heavy penalties for even the slightest delay or mistake. These restrictions have forced Rock the Vote and the League of Women Voters of Florida, among other groups, to shut down their volunteer-led voter registration programs in Florida.