I went to the University of Lincoln’s campus to talk to young voters and to get a vibe for the line and wait time.  The line to vote was about 2 hours long but that was not stopping more students to get in line! 

I thought I would also take a minute to share some critical information from one of my fellow young voter experts, Mike Connery.  There is a lot of information that is inaccurate when it comes to young voters, so here is the scoop:

Are young people registered?
Across the country, millions of young voters were added to the voter rolls in 2008. In critical states like Virginia, Nevada and Ohio, young voters (18 - 29) account for between 40 and 50% of all new voter registrations. The high registration rate is critical since in 2004, 81% of all registered young people voted.

Will young voters actually turnout?
Turnout in recent elections tells us yes. Youth turnout (18 - 29) jumped 9 percentage points in 2004. In 2006 young people once again voted in greater numbers, and in 2008, 6.5 million young people cast ballots in the primaries. Youth turnout in the primaries doubled nationally, and in some states, youth turnout tripled and quadrupled turnout from recent primary elections.

Why does it matter if they turnout?
Young voters - 44 million strong - make up 22% of the eligible electorate and they are overwhelmingly Democratic. In 2006, young voters picked Democrats over Republicans by 22 percentage points and helped tip key races in Virginia and Montana. All of the polls indicate roughly 60% of young people prefer Obama over McCain. With the increased registration and increased turnout patterns over the past two elections, not only are young voters poised to swing the election in favor of Obama but they have the potential to swing down ballot races for Democrats all across the country.

For young voters this election is about the issues and the stakes have never been higher.
Young people are voting in record numbers because they care about the issues. 60% of young people think the country is on the wrong track and the economy is more than 10 times more important to them than it was a year ago, with 53% citing the economy as their number one reason for voting.

Young voters are informed on the issues. A Medill School of journalism poll in August 2008 found that almost 60% of young people surveyed say they follow news about the presidential campaign either fairly or very closely. Almost half say they go online at least once a week for news about the elections (49%), politics (44%) and political candidates (44%) – almost as often as for news about entertainment (50%), hobbies (47%), and their school (44%).

Outreach matters, and peer-to-peer is the gold standard. This is the first election in decades in which major party candidates spoke to the issues of young voters and dedicated real resources - in the form of peer-to-peer outreach aimed at America's youth. That's why we are seeing such high levels of engagement this cycle.

In 2004 a number of groups tested various methods of increasing youth voter turnout. Student PIRG's New Voters Project found that in six states where they both registered and contacted young people; the turnout was thirteen percent higher than turnout rates among a group of demographically similar individuals.

Groups like the Student PIRGs, the Bus Federation, Young Democrats, The League of Young Voters and Power Vote will be working together to contact the millions of young people in the weeks and days leading up to Election Day. Meanwhile, organizations like SAVE, Video the Vote, and the Election Protection Coalition (1-866-our-vote) are working tirelessly to address the unique barriers faced by young people in the election process, from registration to voting.