‘‘Operation: Vote” had an ambitious goal - registering and requesting absentee ballots for the 4,400-strong Brigade of Midshipmen.

‘‘Absentee voting can be a real pain,” remarked Midn. 2⁄C Roger L. Misso. ‘‘Our goal was to make it so easy that there would be no excuse for anyone as to why they shouldn’t vote.”

Midshipmen were supplied with copies of the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA), a convenient, universal form for military voters to both register to vote and request absentee ballots. Each Midshipman filled out a form and simply returned it to one of the voting stations around the Hall.

After that, Misso and his staff did the rest. Supplying the envelopes, shipping and handling, and leg work, nearly a dozen Midshipmen worked on locating county board of elections throughout the country, labeling, stuffing and sealing the envelopes, and delivering them personally to the mail room.

‘‘It takes the hassle out of it because no longer do Mids have to supply their own envelopes, come up with their own postage, or figure out where to send their forms,” said Misso.

Voting was also one of the ‘‘Character Week” topics at the Academy, led by Midn. 2⁄C Chris Davis. Midshipmen learned that the United States ranks 119th in the world in terms of democratic voter turnout according to the Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. They also learned that the 18-24 year old demographic has the lowest voter turnout percentage in America, barely achieving 36% turnout in the 2000 election according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

‘‘Operation: Vote!” is one small step in changing all that.

Already, Misso and his staff have processed more than 1,250 registration and ballot requests for their classmates. This qualifies ‘‘Operation: Vote!” as the biggest voter registration drive in Naval Academy history.

‘‘A few months ago, hardly anyone believed that we would get 100 people out to do this,” said Misso. ‘‘But something profound is happening this year. We’re proud that we could help nearly the entire Brigade get excited about this election.”

Misso estimates that at least 80% of Midshipmen are now registered to vote and have absentee ballots on the way for the November general election, well exceeding national averages.