UCLA launches Voting Matters Initiative

The UCLA Bruins Athletic Department unveiled their newest initiative this week, the Voting Matters Initiative (VMI), in which UCLA coaches will facilitate voter education sessions for all 25 athletic teams on campus.

The initiative is said to be focused on voter education as well as voter registration for the Bruin student-athlete population. The release on UCLABruins.com also gave students and student-athletes an easy go-to guide for spots to register to vote and to complete the 2020 census online.

Incoming Alice and Nahum Lainer Family Director of Athletics Martin Jarmond spoke about what triggered this initiative, and why it’s important.

“The events in this country over the past two weeks have motivated many people, including a number of our student-athletes, to use their voices,” Jarmond said. “As an athletic department, now is the time for us to take action, to demonstrate national leadership and to signal to our student-athletes that voting matters. The Voting Matters Initiative will partner with student leaders and existing organizations on campus to provide education and support action.”

The VMI is said to include devoted times for all 25 UCLA head coaches to facilitate voter education sessions. The coaches are said to also have flexibility in terms of scheduling their specific team’s session for when best supports their schedule, however, it is said to also be required to be completed prior to September 25. That is, of course, the cutoff for voter registration for this year’s general election that takes place on November 3.