Born on January 11, 1885 to Quaker parents in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, Alice Paul dedicated her life to the single cause of securing equal rights for all women.
TRENTON – “New Jersey Women Vote: The 19th Amendment at 100” has joined NJ Mock Election in hosting “NJ Vote 100,” an online mock election for grades 4-12. The statewide initiative will take place Feb. 1–14 to coincide with the centennial of New Jersey’s ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited states from denying citizens the vote on the basis of sex. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the historic legislation, NJ Vote 100 will pay tribute to the suffrage movement by demonstrating the value of voting to students.
The mock election is a collaboration between the New Jersey Center for Civic Education’s NJ Mock Election and NJ Women Vote: The 19th Amendment at 100, a statewide partnership of over 70 New Jersey organizations engaged in planning programs to mark the suffrage centennial in New Jersey. The partnership is co-chaired by New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way and New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy and managed by lead partners, the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the NJ Department of State, and the non-profit Alice Paul Institute.
The vision of NJ Women Vote is to mark the centennial of women’s suffrage while acknowledging its inequities and the challenges New Jersey women of all backgrounds have faced and continue to confront from 1920 to the present day.
The online election is open to both middle and high school classes. Students in grades 4-8 will be able to vote on two “public questions” – one on making Daylight Savings Time permanent and another on delaying the start of the school day. Students in grades 9-12 will vote on the same questions while also voting on the 2020 presidential primary.
“Our state has such deep roots within the women’s suffrage movement, and we are thrilled to be honoring this history in a way that gets young people involved,” said New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way. “It’s never too early to teach our students the importance of voting, and what it means to have a voice in their community. Engaging young people in voting will help them grow into informed citizens and diligent voters.”
Teachers are encouraged to register their classes for NJ Vote 100 at njmockelection.org.
