Participation in community and political meetings, community events, and voting are civic duties.

GROUP PARTICIPATION: Despite the important social and other benets that participation in groups provides, attendance in formal organizations is generally not high. Group participation nationally, as measured by attendance at a group or organization meeting, was slightly more than 35%. In New York, 31.2% of residents reported attending a group or organizational meeting. The state ranked 45th on this Civic Health indicator.

New York residents who have lived at their residence for longer periods of time are slightly more likely to participate in groups. An estimated 27% of New Yorkers who had lived at their residence for less than a year reported group attendance, lower than the state rate. Despite the group emphasis of many religious organizations, a similar percentage of members in a church, synagogue, or mosque participate in groups as compared with participation in New York overall.

Nationwide, there is a strong correlation between group membership and electoral participation. In New York, those who are not in groups are especially likely to be disengaged from politics. Just 10.9% of New Yorkers who aren't members of any group do anything related to non–electoral politics (compared with 13.6% nationwide).

Having group afliation is also related to a higher volunteering rate in New York. The CPIS asked whether New Yorkers had attended any club, organization, or community meeting; 56% reported having attended at least one in the last year. However, when asked in the New York State Leisure Poll about any type of club attendance, 71% said they never attend, and 21% expressed a desire to do so more frequently.

VOTING: In 2008, the voter registration rate among eligible citizens in New York was 65.8%. With the national registration rate at 71.0%, New York ranked 47th in the country. New York's registration rate reected a two percentage point increase compared with 2004. New York fared slightly better in terms of voter turnout. Ranked 44th among the other states, New York had a voter turnout rate of 58.8% in the November 2008 election. Nationally, the voter turnout was 63.6%.

New Yorkers with higher family income and higher educational attainment were more likely to vote. Only 41% of New Yorkers over 25 with less than a high school education voted, which is almost thirty percentage points less than college graduates. Young New Yorkers were the least likely to vote, with more than half not exercising their right to vote. An estimated 62% of white New Yorkers voted as compared with 55% of African American and 33% of Asian American voters.

NON–ELECTORAL POLITICAL EVENT PARTICIPATION: The Civic Health Index investigates the methods that Americans use to express their political opinions other than voting. Some Americans (14.8%) chose to support a party or candidate through donating, putting up a poster, or other means. About one in ten New Yorkers participated in this form of political activity.

Slightly more than one in ten Americans chose to contact or visit a public official at any level of government. New Yorkers contacted their ofcials about their political opinions at a similar rate (9.6%).

Differences exist among New Yorkers who express political voice in one of these ways and people who do not participate. New Yorkers with a higher family income engage in these political acts at a higher rate than New Yorkers with lower income. New Yorkers under 24 are less likely to contact public ofcials or demonstrate support for a candidate or party.

The Civic Health Index also measured attendance at a meeting in which political issues are discussed and at a march, rally, protest, or demonstration. There are low levels of participation in these forms of expression nationally as well as in New York State, which is behind the national average for both indicators. Only 7.7% of New Yorkers reported attending a political meeting, and only 2.8% have attended some type of political march or demonstration.

The CPIS explored similar forms of participation: 28% of New Yorkers reported attending a political meeting or rally at least once in the last year. An estimated 73% of Republicans, 62% of Democrats, and 75% of Independents or voters of other parties had not attended such events.

Educational attainment is an important factor in the political participation of New Yorkers. Estimates of political activity increase with higher educational attainment. Of New Yorkers over 25 who have attained at least a college degree, an estimated 12% have attended a political meeting. An estimated 17% of New Yorkers over 25 with a college degree supported a political candidate or party, about seven percentage points above the general New York rate. Similar patterns are found among New Yorkers who contacted or visited their public ofcials.

COMMUNITY AND CULTURAL PARTICIPATION: The CPIS and the New York State Leisure Poll revealed that some New Yorkers participate in society through community and cultural events. In the New York State Leisure Poll, 81% reported attending cultural events and a little more than half reported attending public meetings or lectures at least once a year. Similarly, about three–quarters of respondents in the CPIS reported attending a community event such as a carnival, fundraiser, concert, show, parade, or festivals. A similar number devote time to attending religious services at least once a year. However, attendance could be improved at other events. In the CPIS , 60% reported not attending a public meeting in the past year in which there was a discussion of town or school affairs.