South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg spoke at Riley High School on Tuesday to encourage eligible students to vote in the midterm elections.

Buttigieg has partnered with South Bend-area principals for the "Cap, Gown, Vote" initiative.

The goal is to ensure that all students who will be 18 years old by November 6 are registered to vote.

As part of National Voter Registration Day, Buttigieg opened the discussion to students, asking for their opinions on the community and what could be done better.

The mayor has also signed on to the "Mayors for Our Lives" pledge, which encourages young people to get involved in civic duties.

"Frankly there are some voices you hear more than others, and you don't always hear the voice of high school students, just because you have to go out of your way as a mayor to make sure you're interacting with them," Buttigieg said. "What you hear is some of what they're concerned with is the same as the rest of us, right? Safety, violence, good infrastructure. There are also a lot of other things that we don't spend as much time talking about on the 14th floor, like making sure there are fun and constructive things to do."

The registration deadline for the general election is October 9.