In case you’ve been living under a rock, the presidential race for 2016 has been a very publicized one. Instead of hearing about “the issues,” we’re getting more than the usual dose of slander and outrageous tactics. This is one of the first elections that millennials have a true understanding about. Some were able to vote in the 2012 Election, but it also involved an incumbent and was not as highly publicized as “buzz-worthy” as the 2016 election already has been. I’m not talking about hashtags or Vines or memes, but rather the election, specifically the upcoming primaries, has been made a pop culture spectacle.
Whether you’re a Democrat, Republican, split down the middle, or you truly have no clue, you’ve heard about the race, the debates, and the unbelievable things spoken by some of these candidates.
For instance, Republican front-runner Donald Trump (it’s terrifying to say those words out loud) has literally said, “I could shoot someone and still not lose votes in Iowa.” There are so many things wrong with this. For starters, it’s probably true. Second, normal people, let alone candidates running to be the ruler of the free world, don’t say that. Common courtesy and just plain respect has flown out the window. It’s hard to even categorize what Trump is doing and saying. It’s not enough to say he has an aggressive approach. The truly heinous things he’s said about whole religions and other people are unbelievable to say the least. But because of how big this election is and how big his persona is, we are almost excusing the behavior by advertising it so much. The election and its band of characters are attracting more entertainment news outlets in addition to the typical Fox News and CNN.
Not to say that it’s bad. There’s a huge grouping of millennials involved with this election because of its easy access to the popular media. But is this getting us an increase in voters in the primaries? And this doesn’t just go for millennials, it goes for everyone. Millions of people are talking about these candidates, whether to praise, ridicule, or simply because they’ve made celebrities out of themselves. But just because you share an article on your Facebook wall does not mean you’re voting in the primaries, let alone even registered to vote. Are all the hashtags for “The Bern” really getting the voters out? Or just the headlines?
This is not a normal race; it’s downright bizarre. This is not where we were in 2008 or even 2012, when millennials first started being exposed to elections where we had some understanding of them. Also, much has changed for the routine voters as well. I know that slander and mud-slinging happens; I took American Government in school, so I know that it’s normal for big headlines every once in a while. But we’re talking about something much bigger than allegations. And I know debates get heated, but we can’t very well decide on a leader when all we’ve heard is either passive-aggressive hits towards opponents or straight-up outrageous and crude comments towards people and nations. How are we supposed to vote in the primaries if that’s all we’re really hearing?
Of course we should all try to do our research, but Facebook and Twitter are easier outlets. And what’s trending on Facebook and Twitter isn’t giving us all the information we need to vote. It’s always going to be on us to become informed but when we’re being fed all these headlines on a silver platter, of course it’s easy for us to get carried away in that. One thing I know is that I’m nowhere near ready to cast my vote yet, whether that be because of this buzz-worthy election or not. I can’t be the only one still confused.
