US Election 2016: What do America’s youth think?
Rarely has the USA or even the world ever seen a US election quite like this one, with both sides fighting it out to get their preferred candidate sworn in next January. But what do America’s youth have to say on the matter? It turns out the answer is, quite a lot! Recently I got the chance to interview one such young person on what the election meant to her.
Jean is a Bostonian teenager who whilst being too young to vote, is highly opinionated on the subject. In terms of whether the election will have a positive or negative effect on the youth of the US she felt that, “ I think that in the long run, the elections will have a positive effect on youth”. She explained that the election has been, “almost forcing us to look at how we want our country to be run.”
In addition to this, Jean also mentioned that on a personal level the election has, “given someone like me a lot to think about in terms of policies and what kinds of laws or amendments I believe in” Following on from this she adds, “ I believe in which is important since I will be voting in the 2020 elections.” showing how whatever decision is made on Tuesday will affect what happens in future electoral cycles.
When asked whether she thought that this election had seen more or less youth engagement she stated, “Yes there absolutely has been more youth engagement.” Adding that this election has meant that, “ Parents have had to explain to their kids why certain things have been said by each candidate,” She gave the example that, “ fathers have had to explain to their daughters why some man who is running for president is talking about sexually assaulting women” referring to the sexual assault allegations about Republican Candidate Donald Trump. In terms of Trump’s Democratic Party rival, Jean argued that she also had a role to play in youth engagement because, “more families are getting involved since this may be a historic election if we elect the first female president.”
On speaking to Jean, one thing that she made clear was just how important it was that the youth of America (including those too young to vote) were involved in the election. This is mainly because, as she simply put it, “we are the next generation” Adding that, “It’ll just be us making the decisions and we need to have a say in what will happen to our country in the next few years.” I found it interesting how her arguments echoed what many UK youths had said in the last election and EU referendum. She summed up her view on youth involvement by declaring, “If adults make the wrong choice, we will pay for it later on.”
One thing I really wanted to know from Jean was what she thought, as an American about how the election campaigns had been fought. When asked about this she summed up her viewpoint by mentioning how, “Both campaigns have had their ups and downs.” She also added that whilst some of Donald Trump’s remarks, “are extremely insensitive and rude to especially women, Muslims and Hispanics.” she points out that, “Hillary’s campaign hasn’t been perfect all the way through.” Interestingly though, she also said she felt that with regards to the former Secretary of State, “I wouldn’t put her campaign anywhere near Trump’s on a scale of ugliness.” Adding to this that she felt Donald Trump’s campaign was, “downright ugly” but she viewed Clinton’s campaign to be, “more a political campaign.” However Jean argued that for both sides they should’ve, “taken a step back and not just insulted one another but actually shared their policies and tried to win by actually gaining support based on their views.” This is instead of people trying to win because of, “their ability to trash talk or say things they will never be able to do.”
Finally, I asked Jean whether she felt the election result would affect how the world saw the USA, regardless of who wins. Immediately she replied, “It absolutely will.” She added that, “We let a man with no political experience, who is threatening to ban an ethnic groups and who has admitted on tv to assaulting women run for president.” Amusingly she concluded her answer by declaring, “I know you all are laughing at us and honestly I’m laughing at us too.”
So it appears that whilst too young to vote herself, Jean views the youth of the USA as a key tool in not just these elections but in the future of the nation itself. With opinion polls tightening, this presidential race is truly anyone’s for the taking.
