Just one in ten Wyomingites aged 18-24 cast ballots in the 2014 general election, and Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Murray hopes the state's first-ever Youth Voter Summit will drive that number up come November.

"I've heard it said that 'our youth are the future,'" Murray says in a press release. "I believe that's true, but, I also believe that Wyoming's youth are the 'now.'

Ed Murray Portrait
Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Murray
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Murray will be joined by Wyoming Governor Matt Mead, Wyoming-born Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner and young Wyomingites in discussing the importance of the youth vote. Dr. David Bobb, President of the Bill of Right's Institute based in Washington, D.C., will also speak.

The summit is set for 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4. in the University of Wyoming's Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center. It's free to attend, and lunch will be provided.

The office of Albany County Clerk Jackie Gonzales will provide voter registration from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Events will be livestreamed and broadcast at Casper College and Laramie County Community College.

Expert panels will address the relationship between civic education, civic participation and youth participation in the political process as well as how the changing media landscape impacts youth perceptions of politics.

Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band will finish off the evening.

"By casting a vote, our youth have the opportunity to determine their future as well as the future of Wyoming and our nation," Murray says.

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