The current millennial generation is the largest generation in over a century, and Americans born between 1981 and 1999 are expected to make up 40% of the eligible U.S. voting populace by 2020 (Washington Times). These are certainly impressive numbers, statistics that one would assume to be indicative of the relative political influence of American youths today.
Of course, as far as news goes, predictable is boring, and as you may have guessed by now, the number of eligible youth voters far from corresponds to the demographic's actively political representation. Actually, as of 2014, only 46.7% of eligible young Americans (aged 18-24) had registered to vote; of those registered, 12.4 million did not actually cast a ballot (Circle Election Data). Now, it might not seem like a huge deal, but believe me when I say: THIS IS BAD.
Think about it this way: politicians are elected by popular vote. Popular vote today does not adequately represent young adults. Politicians create their political platforms in order to appeal to a specific target audience. That target audience does not currently include a proportional number of young voters. From the political standpoint of a politician aiming to get elected, it often makes more sense to create a platform favorable to reliable adult voters than to preoccupy themselves with appeasing a youth population, which may or may not turn out substantial votes. Check out the graph below for a visual representation of what I mean:
The color-coding of this graph may be hard to distinguish, but the top two lines represent both 25 and older (45.5%), and 30 and older (47.9%) voting citizens, and the bottom two lines represent both 18-24 (17.1%) and 18-29 (19.9%) voting citizens. That is a big gap!
For a generation with high levels of unemployment and low levels of wealth, this is clearly problematic. The millennial demographic, in possession of an average student loan debt of 27K (Washington Times) requires a level of governmental representation that it is simply not receiving, due in large part to its failure to register/vote! We are essentially kicking ourselves in the heads by refusing to employ our own political power.
Furthermore, we truly do have significant power to employ. In the '08 presidential elections, the youth vote favored presidential candidate Barack Obama by a twenty-three point margin, a margin significant enough to procure him a win against Mitt Romney (U.S. News). The fact is, our votes do matter, and we are fools not to use them to the best of our abilities.
So, now that you are all thoroughly aware of the importance of the youth vote (if you were already informed on the subject, extra kudos!), you may be asking yourselves:
Luckily for you, the next steps are actually quite quick and easy. Voting is a simple, two-step process, consisting of registration and ballot casting. For your convenience, I have provided a brief explanation of both steps!
1. How to Register:
For those of you, like me, who groan with frustration at the very mention of paperwork, I urge you not to let your fear of wrist cramps and inky hands get in the way of registering to vote. If you are 18 years or older, you can even apply for registration online-- and get this: it only takes TWO MINUTES. Here are a few sites I recommend, for both their clarity and speed:
Rock The Vote Online: http://www.rockthevote.com/register-to-vote/?sourc...
Register to Vote: http://registertovote.org
Note: In some states, you can actually register to vote before your 18th birthday, as long as you have turned eighteen by the time the actual elections roll around.
2. How to Cast a Ballot:
http://www.vote411.org Unsure of where to vote? Check out this handy website-- it will provide you with the exact addresses of nearby poll sites. Just plug in your location, and show up on the designated day. Simple!
Note: You can also send in your vote via airmail. Just make sure to send in your ballot by the cut-off date, and check in with your voting jurisdiction to determine if there are additional constraints placed on airmail voting. If you're going to go to the trouble of mailing in a ballot, make sure it counts!
Ultimately, whether you choose to exercise your right to vote remains entirely up to you. Just as nobody else has the right to tell you who to vote for, nobody has the right to force you into voting in the first place. However, when looking at the bigger picture, if you are a young adult in school, currently employed, or living independently of your guardians, it probably makes sense to get your opinion voiced in the political arena.
