It looks to be a contentious election season this year, as voters will not only have to keep their eyes on the midterms in November, but Angelenos will also have to contend with the mayoral race between incumbent Karen Bass and her many challengers.
To get more youth involved in the voting process, students from California State University, Northridge (CSUN) and a coalition of seniors are collaborating to get other students registered to vote before this current semester comes to an end.
Cesar Rosales, chair of legislative affairs at CSUN, told the San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol that back in December 2025, he began conversations about the mayoral race with others at the university. One of his responsibilities as chair is keeping students informed of what’s going on in local and national elections, and how it affects them and the university.
Seeing how these races have been getting more attention from the youth over the years, he figured it would be worthwhile to have programs on campus to get students informed and registered to vote.
Rosales – who is also the representative for Associated Students, an auxiliary organization that works in advocacy, programming, organization and club spacing – said he reached out to The University Corporation (TUC), a CSUN nonprofit auxiliary, to get help with setting up areas for voter registration tables.
It was through TUC that Rosales was put in contact with a nearby group that could assist with tabling – Northridge Indivisible. They are a volunteer group of seniors who define themselves as “grassroots progressives” who launched the Raising Canes movement last year to bring more awareness to the cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
Northridge Indivisible has worked with TUC several times in the past, but as far as Rosales is aware, this is the first time the volunteer group of seniors and Associated Students have worked together.
Rosales said it’s been “interesting” seeing students joined with activist seniors together, especially as both demographics are in sync on similar issues.
“I talked to some of the folks in [Northridge] Indivisible about some of the things they were fighting for when they were younger college students and a lot of those values line up with what we’re fighting for today, at least in regard to student success and student stability,” Rosales said.
“It’s been really interesting to have that kind of perspective. The group has been lovely. They’re incredibly passionate and are so good to work with. … It’s nice to see collaboration between groups that I think typically [news] media portrays in a very negative light as being antagonistic towards each other.”
Duski Wanamaker, Northridge Indivisible treasurer, said that seniors and students each have their own strengths they bring. Seniors have life experience and knowledge of past civic movements, while the youth have more energy, creativity and familiarity with digital tools and social media.
“Working together expands outreach and helps reach more voters across generations,” Wanamaker said. “Collaboration encourages intergenerational dialogue. … When different generations unite for voter registration efforts, it sets an example of shared responsibility. It shows participation is not limited by age, but is a lifelong commitment.”
Associated Students and Northridge Indivisible will be on campus starting next week on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and will continue to register students until the last week of April.
While there are talks to potentially extend their programming until early next semester for the general election, nothing has yet been confirmed.
“This effort for voter registration is going to be campus-wide,” Rosales said. “We are hoping to collaborate with all of our … clubs and institutions to better advance voter registration. That means tabling on different spots, inviting clubs to [collaborate] with us, all these things … to get students out there and to vote come June and November.”
Possible Impact from the War in Iran
Over the weekend, as President Donald Trump launched an attack on Iran, Democrats nationwide condemned his move that bypassed Congress. There have been widespread protests, including a demonstration outside LA City Hall on March 2.
When asked how he thinks that this could impact the elections, Rosales said that students will be more likely to respond – whether it be positive or negative.
“At CSUN, all we can do is get students ready to vote, keep them informed on who’s running, who their supporters are, just to make sure that a student … has the best possible information they can get so they can make an informed choice,” Rosales said.
Similarly, when asked whether there were concerns that Trump would use this conflict to justify canceling the midterms, Rosales said it’s their job to advocate for the best interests of their students.
“We will put out statements in opposition to those efforts here on campus,” he said. “All we can do, besides that, is continue to register students, inform students and make sure they’re fully aware of their rights as a voter and as someone who lives in the U.S.”