(FREEHOLD, NJ) -- Monmouth County Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon is inviting all Monmouth County high school students to enter the County Clerk's High School #YourVoteMatters Video Reel Contest. Students are challenged to create a social media reel aimed at promoting the importance of voting among their peers.  Entries are accepted through October 22, 2025.

“Our youth are our future leaders, so it’s so important that they understand how vital voting is to our democracy,” said Clerk Hanlon. “This contest is a great way for our teens to use their social media skills while becoming engaged first-time voters.”

Clerk Hanlon has worked to increase voter participation among young people through her high school “Your Vote Matters” program, which stresses the importance of civic responsibility.

The Monmouth County Clerk’s Elections Division oversees sample ballots, vote-by-mail applications, candidate petitions, tabulation of totals and the certification of results.

The top three videos will be awarded gift card prizes by Clerk Hanlon and will be released for public viewing via the County Clerk’s social media platforms and voter outreach program.

The 2025 High School #YourVoteMatters Video Reel Contest is open to all high school students who reside in Monmouth County and/or attend a high school in Monmouth County. Students are allowed to work alone or in groups to produce a social media reel of up to two minutes that demonstrates the importance of voting. Full contest rules and eligibility may be viewed or downloaded in PDF format. For questions about the contest, please email [email protected].

The Office of the Monmouth County Clerk is comprised of five divisions handling property recordings, elections, archives, passports and records management.  The County Clerk’s Office also provides resident, veteran and Gold Star Family identification cards to eligible county residents, administers oaths to notaries and public officials and performs wedding ceremonies. The Monmouth County Clerk is a constitutional and administrative officer elected to a five-year term by the voters of Monmouth County. Christine Giordano Hanlon, Esq. was elected Monmouth County Clerk in November 2015 and was re-elected to a second term in November 2020.