Young people will largely avoid voting in next week’s midterm elections, and this should come as no surprise to anyone who follows elections closely. While young people did turn out in relatively large numbers in 2008 and 2012, the youth vote largely goes silent during midterm elections.
We hear the excuses time and time again. Voting doesn’t matter, both parties are corrupt, politics suck or politicians don’t share my views. Whatever the excuse may be, young people need to put down their smartphones and vote. You may think your vote doesn’t matter, but that attitude is exactly what’s allowed corrupt and thick-headed politicians to win office.
Whether you plan to vote next week or not, we can all agree that politics in the U.S. are a divisive mess, and whether it’s in Washington or Tallahassee, they are in desperate need of change. Regardless of your ideology or party affiliation, you owe it to yourself to be part of the process, rather than just another grumbling young person disillusioned with American politics.
Our state and country face enormous tasks that must be solved with leadership in politics. You may despise government and think politicians are Satan incarnate, but the fact remains that citizens willing to serve their state or country must solve society’s largest ills. When it seems that corruption and ineffectiveness has permeated every corner of public service, it’s our responsibility as citizens and voters to find new and effective leadership.
If the Democrats and Republicans don’t do it for you, vote third party or write in a candidate. Sure, they’re guaranteed to lose, but you can’t reform the system if you don’t let people know you’re dissatisfied. If choosing the lesser of two evils won’t get the job done, choose someone else and let people know why.
It’s easy to make excuses, and surely young people will generate a host of reasons why they didn’t vote this year, and few — if any — will have merit. If you’re sick or have familial reasons why you can’t make it to the polls, then perhaps you have a valid excuse, but in a time where you can vote by mail or vote early, you certainly have time to vote. Voting is easy and relatively painless, and it matters more than you think.
In 2012, I worked on a campaign that lost a runoff by a mere seventeen votes. Granted, this loss can and should be placed squarely on the shoulders of those running the campaign — myself included — but how many people decided that voting just didn’t matter and stayed home? I still believe my candidate was the better person for the job, and if that’s true, the impact of that election was enormous for the candidate’s community.
Honestly, it’s astounding how many Americans roll their eyes at elections and ignore their right to vote. How many countries in the world don’t have fair or open elections? How many countries pretend to have democracies only to rig the election process and leave thousands or millions of citizens without true democratic representation?
We complain about millions of dollars in corporate contributions controlling campaigns and lobbyists rigging the government in their favor, but we still have the opportunity to vote and choose our representation. It may seem like something reserved for a civics class, with a teacher pontificating about the importance of the right to vote, but perhaps that’s what we need.
You can ignore the polls on Tuesday and thumb your nose at the process, but as the old adage goes, if you don’t vote, you can’t complain. Fill your Facebook page with complaints about politicians and the government, but if you don’t vote, your words are largely empty, forever lost in a sea of cyberspace-based grievances.
Whether you vote for Charlie Crist, Rick Scott or Mickey Mouse, vote for someone or something on Tuesday. Who knows, your vote may be the one that decides the future of your community, the state or even the country. So, do yourself a favor next week and vote.
Joel Mendelson is a UF grad student in political campaigning. His columns usually appear on Wednesdays.
[A version of this story ran on page 6 on 10/28/2014]
