Voting Booms Among Younger Voters

With the looming election of 2020 11 months away, much has been made of the increased registration of young people in the U.S.

It’s clear that there are young adults out there that care about the future of this country and want to see a change. But there are some who would prefer to not get involved with politics.

“I’m proud to exercise my rights, rights that my grandfather fought for in World War II,” said Elijah Abramo, a 20-year-old junior majoring in Accounting with a minor in Communications at Chaminade University.

Generation Z, Millennials, and Generation X — those ages ranging from 18 to 53 — outvoted the older generation by a whopping 62.2 million votes to 60.1 million votes during the midterm elections in 2018, according to the Pew Research Center on voter turnout. With a huge influx of the younger generation, some people shared their views on voting and why they do or do not vote.

Abramo voted in the 2018 midterm elections and argued that voting is too high of a privilege to give up. He encouraged everyone to go out and vote.

“I’d say to those who are unsure and are voting for their first time, try it,” he said. “You will be better informed and more knowledgeable every time you head to the ballot box.”

Emmerson Mendoza believes that voting is a crucial part of being a citizen of the United States. Mendoza is a junior majoring in Kinesiology at California State University, Northridge.

“We get to decide who is best fit to represent us,” said the 20-year-old Waipahu native. “Your vote is important and future policies and laws are dependent on the people we put in power.”

Mendoza went on to say that voting plays a huge role when it comes to keeping  the strength and integrity of the country and that it is a privilege to have this right.

Voting is a subject that he takes seriously. He stresses that every vote counts and to really think about your decision and to not fill in random bubbles with the voting ballot.

On the contrary, Kyle Armstrong believes that his vote doesn’t make an impact and that it would be better to not vote, especially since his knowledge with the subject of politics is minimal. Armstrong is a graduate from University of Nevada, Reno with a degree in Communications.

“My one vote isn’t going to make a difference,” said the 21-year-old who moved back to Oahu after graduation. “I’m better off not voting because it doesn’t make a difference, and I don’t really know much about politics.”

Armstrong continued to say that if he took the time to learn more about the system and how it works, his view would change. However, he feels that understanding politics is not a pressing manner as of now.

“If I had the time I would learn more about the subject,” Armstrong said. “As a person who is fresh out of college, there are a lot of things that are on my plate that are more urgent.”

Other than the younger generation, some of the older generation share their views on the subject and what they have to say to those who are new to the voting scene.

A professor at Chaminade, who asked to remain anonymous, said that she is an avid voter and said that being a part of the older generation, the attention span of what is going on in politics is small and so voting is something they do to use their right.

She went on to say that she believes that the reason why the younger generation are getting more interested in the subject of politics is because of the current president, Donald Trump.

“I feel like Trump’s actions have caught the attention of the younger generation and now they are getting more and more into politics because of him,” the professor said.

This new influx of the younger generation outdoing the older generation isn’t something new when it comes to voting. According to the Vox, this pattern is very similar to the 2016 election where there were 69.9 million votes casted by the younger generation and 67.9 million came from boomers and older adults.

“This is an important right for everyone who qualify,” Mendoza said.

The general election will be held on Nov. 3, 2020.