Vice President Kamala Harris has declared that the United States government will compensate college students for registering voters and working as ‘nonpartisan’ poll workers. The funding for this initiative will come from the federal work-study program.
“We have been doing work to promote voter participation for students,” Harris said during the announcement, adding: “And for example, we have under the federal work-study program now allows students to get paid through federal work-study, to register people, and to be nonpartisan poll workers.” The Vice President said the Biden government was focused on activating young leaders to strengthen communities through increased voter engagement.
The Department of Education, which manages the federal work-study scheme, has confirmed the program’s funds are aimed at supporting students with their everyday college expenses. However, these benefits are to be earned through a work-study job. A policy memo issued by the Department of Education announced that voter registration employment would fulfill the work-study job requirement. “The Department is today clarifying that FWS funds may be used for employment by a Federal, State, local, or Tribal public agency for civic engagement work that is not associated with a particular interest or group,” read the memo.
The move by the Biden government is just the latest in a series of dubious decisions that critics fear are intended to impact the 2024 presidential election outcome. The National Pulse previously reported that a Biden appointee at the Department of Homeland Security has led the legal efforts to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot.