Rates of women voter registrations are surging–particularly where reproductive rights are threatened

Anadolu Agency // Getty Images More significant numbers of women registering to vote may indicate increased support for Democratic candidates come election day, especially since women have historically turned out to vote at higher rates than men and are more likely to be Democrats. Still, Tom Bonier of TargetSmart is wary of making any concrete predictions. “What we’re seeing is the entire political landscape changing. This is so, so different from trends in the past,” Bonier told Stacker. He acknowledged that registrations among young people also saw an uptick in 2018, particularly in response to the Parkland school shooting and the subsequent youth-led March For Our Lives movement. These registrations did eventually show up as higher turnout and increased early voting. But voter registration rates amongst women and young people have outstripped even those of 2018’s midterm cycle. Abortion legislation, more than individual candidates, seems to have galvanized voters. “Elections where abortion is directly on the ballot, like Kansas, seem to be showing this impact,” Bonier said. You may also like: Women politicians who broke barriers