Kamala Harris announces federal government will start PAYING students to sign Americans up to vote and fill in it polling stations because so many quit after the 2020 election

Vice President Kamala Harris met with voting rights leaders on Tuesday, outlining her strategy for the government to start paying students to register people to vote.

Harris met with voting rights activists in the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC on Tuesday to talk about strategies to boost voting across the country. 

'We have been doing work to promote voter participation for students, and for example we have under the federal work study program, now allow students to get paid through federal work study to register people and be non-partisan poll workers,' she said.

US Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks on the fight for voting rights,

US Vice President Kamala Harris (C) attends a meeting with voting rights leaders

The Department of Education recently clarified in a memo published Monday that Federal Work Study funds could be used to support voter registration activities.

'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,' the memo read.

Harris said that enticing students with federal work study funds would help them get engaged with their communities.

'As we know, this is important for a number of reasons,' she said. 'One to engage our young leaders in this process and activate them in terms of their ability to strengthen our communities but also, this is the work that we need to do knowing that so many poll workers have left this work for a variety of reasons which we will also discuss.'

Beginning in 2021, Harris asked to lead on the issue of voting rights, but the administration has struggled to make progress on the issue, disappointing activists.

The vice president explained that the idea of paying students was part of a four-part strategy by the administration to use every federal agency to increase voter registration ahead of the 2024 election. 

South Carolina residents wait in line to vote early at the Lexington County Voter Registration Office

South Carolina residents wait in line to vote early at the Lexington County Voter Registration Office

Harris said the Biden administration would also start sending voting information to the 21 million Americans currently enrolled in the Affordable Care Act.

'I can now announce that HHS will start emailing information on how to register to vote to everyone who enrolled in the ACA, the Affordable Care Act,' she said, referring to the government subsidized health exchanges known as Obamacare.

She added the Department of the Interior would start displaying voter registration information at the gate of every national park and that the Social Security offices would also display similar information.

'There's so much about our work that we do together that really is grounded and also I think a common belief in the importance of self-determination and the connection between that and the right of people to be able to express their civic duty in every way including through their ability, unfettered ability to vote,' she said.

Harris also condemned the rise in threats of violence against polling workers, specifically referring to 'harrowing' threats against poll workers in Georgia after the 2020 presidential election.

Hundreds of people wait in line for early voting on Oct. 12, 2020, in Marietta, Ga

'In recent years we have seen attacks on the integrity of elections,' she said, condemning those trying to 'loudly attempt to interfere in the lawful votes of the American people.'

She urged poll workers to contact the Department of Justice about ways to protect poll workers.

Harris again accused Republican states like Georgia and Texas of passing 'anti-voter laws' and 'voter suppression laws' and urged them to continue working with the Justice Department to challenge them.

She promoted three days of organization to register more voters, naming Juneteenth, the anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, and National Voter Registration Day as days she wanted to activate more workers.