The very first three words in our constitution are “We the People,” because as a nation we collectively decide who leads and represents our country. Historically, votes from younger people have been what carries us through the next several decades, so naturally, they are who we should be looking to for the bigger decisions being made in our government.
It’s easy to feel as though your vote doesn’t make a difference when dealing with federal matters, especially as a new voter. Often when discussing politics, it’s assumed that younger people aren’t as knowledgeable about the government or economics compared to older generations who have been involved in the voting process for longer. The reality is that we need to be empowering young voters. New perspectives and ideas are desperately needed given our current political climate, and decisions being made now in our democracy are going to have greater consequences for Gen Z and the younger generations as well.
The League of Women Voters released an article on October 17th of 2023 stating that “voters aged 18-34 will make up over 40 million potential voters in 2024,” cementing the fact that our generation makes up the majority of the voting population.
Our young voter electorates’ greatest strength is our diversity. According to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), we are the most diverse group in American history, and yet it’s been found that today’s youth has the lowest percentile of faith in the democratic process.
This often comes from a lack of news consumption, as well as little political support. In one of CIRCLE’s surveys, only 35% of young people reported feeling supported in acting on their political beliefs, perpetuating the understanding that even if they were to vote, it wouldn’t make a big difference. However, a highly beneficial way to get more teens and young adults involved and engaged in the voting process is by encouraging it in public schools.
Alex Garcia, a government teacher at Mead High School, as well as our official Weld County voting registrar, shares that Colorado has overall the highest voting turnout in the nation and that despite common a misconception that you have to wait until you are 18 years old to become a registered voter, our state makes it incredibly easy to get registered early.
“You can register online [which is] the easiest way, you can register at the DMV, [and] you can register by mail, any [of those] three places.” You’re also able to pre-register once you get your license at 16. There’s also various posters with QR codes available here at school that will allow you to register early.
He also recommends that when trying to form your own opinions on various political topics, it’s important to understand that all news networks have a political bias; however, they all have journalistic standards and get their information from real sources. Ultimately choosing to look at all spectrums of news media and consider the differing sides of our political parties is a sound way to be fully informed and educated.
