Improving patterns of voting among the youth (18-24).
By Amoy Barnes
The Problem
2008 was a historic year for Americans,when President Barack Obama became the first black President.Minorities of all races came out in large numbers to vote for President Obama in 2008. The same was seen in 2012 with an increase in Black voter turnout that surpassed White voter turnout for the first time since Reconstruction ended in 1877. One of the big voting blocs during the 2008 election that facilitated Obama’s historic win was the large turnout of young voters. The 18-24 electorate turnouts in 2008wereone of the largest turnouts in American history. This signaled to politicians that young voters wanted to be taken seriously and wanted their issues to be a part of the discussion in Washington.
Unfortunately this youthful energy did not last longand in the 2012 presidential election we saw a 7% decrease in youth voter turnout. The Barack Obama campaign was able to do something that few candidates have done before and that is engage young voters in such a way that prompted them to go to the polls in 2008. But he was not able to keep the momentum going. Somewhere along the way,while trying to get the country out of a recession and fighting a war, he forgot about the youth and so they forgot about him.
Policy Options
The youth vote is not something to be taken for granted. It is a powerful voting bloc (even if they don’t know it) that can force an election in any one direction. It’s important for candidates and current elected officials to analyze the issues voting youth have, and propose the appropriate legislation to rectify the issue. An example of this is student loan debt. The “ballooning” cost of college has increased the average student loan debt from $23,450 in 2008 to $29,400 in 2012. If student loan debt isn’t addressed appropriately the burden will begin to fall on the government when students graduate and cannot afford to pay back their loans.
Job stability plays another major role in youth voter turnout. In a recession students are graduating with thousands of dollars of debt and no job to pay it off. This leaves youth depressed, distressed, and with a defeatist attitude. Their dreams for the future have now dissolved into reality and hopelessness. This attitude discourages young voters from participating in the very process that can change their situation.
Elected officials and candidates have a better chance of getting the youth vote and keeping it if they start taking their issues seriously. The issues of the youth can be traced back to larger issues within our government. Not addressing voting youth issues means ignoring the bigger picture.
Policies can also be put in place to make voting easier for young people. This can be done by mandating that every college campus be a polling site. Sometimes just having the polls there encourages youth to participate in the process.
Everyone votes for his or her reason, and the privilege of voting should not be taken for granted. Educating young people on the importance of voting is one of the best and most important ways to improve voter turnout among youth. If young voters learn from an earlier age the importance of voting they are most likely to vote consistently. The voting process can be intimidating for some and overwhelming for others but if we educate youth on the process so that they understand it before the get to the voting booth we will begin building a voting culture among youth that will make history.