When it comes to the impending election in 2016, there is one phrase that's being seen time and time again: the youth vote. In my opinion, it's something the Democrats love talking about. In fact, many say that the nomination of Senator Bernie Sanders hinges on the youth vote.
But why has mobilizing the youth been so difficult? Well, the youth vote has been declining for years, with over 75% of students not voting in 2014. The youth vote is especially important for the Democratic party, as Republicans in recent history have historically won in presidential elections in which the youth had low turnouts.
Circumstantial issues and lack of confidence in the political process are two main reasons for the majority of polled issues for the youth refusing to vote. When it comes to circumstances, the reason is obvious: students, or working age individuals attempting to create a stable life path for themselves, don't have the time to go out and vote. They may not have the financial stability to take time out of their days to get to a voting booth, which may not be conveniently located, or even have time to register to vote.
Republicans have made it no secret that they understand how the youth vote hurts them in elections, as evinced by the brazen attempts at reducing voter turnout in many states. Isn't in strange that in Texas, a gun license of a state ID is enough to get you into the voter's booth, but a college ID isn't? Isn't it also strange that North Carolina Republicans abolished a bill that helped register high school students to vote when they turn 18?
How the youth feels about elections isn't a surprise either. Youth these days sometimes feel as though their choices are between "a douche and a turd sandwich." Personally, I've seen a lot of youth lament that their vote doesn't count because they live in a blue state/red state, and that party will gain the Electoral College anyway.
Now here's the situation: it's no surprise that the Electoral College system is broken. I could link a ton of articles, and even YouTube videos, outlining all of the issues with the Electoral College. People have been discussing its abolition for a while now. But the thing is, it's never really been as bad as it can be. While Bush won the Electoral College, Al Gore had 540,000 more popular votes in 2000. Keeping in mind the trend of the youth vote, and how low it was in 2000, if the youth came out to vote, especially in states where they feel their respective candidates will already win, this gap could widen.
There's a reason why The New York Times and the "corporate media" can't stop talking about Hillary Clinton, and it may not be the reasons everyone is talking about. Looking at the numbers, we cannot ignore the issue. As the least likely to make it out to the polls, the youth vote matters less and less. Our issues become less important. Even the iconic 2008 election of Obama, as well as in 2012, was attributed more toward the minority vote than the youth vote.
The answer is simple: we have to vote. If it's hard for us to vote, we have to push for ways to make it easier for us to vote: making registration automatic, or making Voting Day a national holiday (both of which are done by many other countries, by the way). Voting is our best way to challenge the political system and to address the concerns of our generation, as well as challenge the Electoral College system, which seeks to draw lines that run counter to the democratic process.
