Importance/Impact of Young Adults Voting
“Now introducing the 45th President of the United States...” These are the fateful words that we are going to hear on Friday, Jan 20, 2017. This will be the day that we inaugurate our new president of the United States. But two months before this date is election day. Which is when we (college students and young adults) should be participating in the voting process. The fact is that young adults don’t take advantage of the opportunity of voicing their opinions, and therefore, our voter turnout is low.
“In every presidential election since 1964, young voters between the ages of 18 through 24 have consistently voted at lower rates than all other age groups, although young adult voting rates have fluctuated from one election to another (Figure 1). Overall, America’s youngest voters have moved towards less engagement over time, as 18- through 24-year-olds’ voting rates dropped from 50.9 percent in 1964 to 38.0 percent in 2012.”
The voices and opinions of young voters in this election are critical because most of the problems that are relevant in this election are related to the youth. Therefore, if you care about your future, you should definitely become more knowledgeable about this election. Then you will understand how important it is for you to participate in this year’s election. Young adults, whose ages range from 18-24, make up a fifth of our population. As a result, we can be a significant driving force in determining our next president.
There’s a mindset by which people believe that your vote doesn’t count, but this is complete nonsense. Every vote counts, and I’ll continue to believe that. Do you think Obama would have been elected for two terms without the young voters? Probably not. The youth vote will probably again decide who wins the next presidential election just because we are, again, a major key to winning. And with student loans being a pivotal issue in this election, hopefully, young voters will use their right to vote. Again, young adults, similar to other age groups, are affected by the new policies and ideas of these politicians and most of the times don’t even notice this. Tuition cost, taxes, birth control, and abortion are all being talked about in the debates that are happening currently. This is because the politicians know that they key to winning the election begins with persuading the young people.
With the candidates starting to gain momentum, it's still not late to become more knowledgeable with them and their beliefs and try to become active in the voting process.
