The Young and the Registered: Post-millennials make their mark on the political map
Young people in America have historically voted in very low percentages. Despite efforts to improve engagement, 18 to 24-year-olds have continued to be the age bracket that is the least likely to vote in elections. But in 2018, youth voted in unprecedented numbers, and the path towards an explanation leads through Parkland, Florida.
According to research conducted by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), an organization based at Tufts University that conducts research on the civic and political engagement of young Americans, 31% of eligible young people voted in the 2018 midterm elections. This is an increase of more than 10 percent from the 2014 midterms, and the highest level of youth participation in a midterm cycle in more than 25 years.
Students at Florida Atlantic University were among those young people, and for many of them, the school shooting that killed 17 in Parkland, Florida — less than half an hour from their Boca Raton campus — motivated them to vote.
Andrea Velez, a junior majoring in Biology at FAU, was able to vote for the first time in the 2018 midterms.
“I felt like nothing was being done in our government, so I was very motivated to vote,” said Velez. “Seeing Parkland happen so close to home just strengthened my position on gun control,” and added that policies on gun control “definitely” influenced her decisions in the voting booth.
“Due to how recent the Parkland shooting was during the time of the midterms, I felt like it was imperative for me to take part in my duty to this country and vote for candidates who can prevent tragedies like these from ever happening,” said Velez.
Velez believes that young people showed up because they were tired of having important decisions made for them. “As young people, we are tired of having these countries decisions made by baby boomers who treat us like idiots even though they are the ones who still have no idea how to use to Google.”
Shauna Gideon, an FAU sophomore studying Health Science, said gun control was the most important issue to her when voting in the 2018 midterms.
“I think a lot of young people don’t vote because they don’t feel like their vote makes a difference, or they don’t feel that either candidate is worthy,” Gideon said. Gideon went on to say that she feels voting is important because it allows young people, and all Americans, to express their opinions in a way that can actually make a difference.
Brittany Desyr is an FAU junior from Queens, New York, and is studying Biology. Desyr did not vote in the 2016 presidential election or the midterms in 2018, despite being eligible during both.
“I didn’t think my vote mattered,” Desyr said about her decision not to vote in 2016, “and I didn’t see either candidate as genuinely compassionate.”
Desyr said she planned to vote in the 2018 midterms, but when the day came, she didn’t feel informed about the legislation being proposed and she wasn’t aware that she could leave spaces on the ballot blank. Desyr said that time and a lack of concern for other Americans hold young people back from voting.
Desyr gave Never Again MSD credit for the high turnout of young voters in the recent midterms. Never Again MSD was founded by Parkland survivors and activists in the aftermath of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, and the organization mounted get-out-the-vote efforts targeting young people leading up to the midterms. The organization also organized a march for gun control called March For Our Lives.
“March For Our Lives ignited so many people because of the lack of justice in school safety and gun control across America,” said Desyr. “When one young person spoke out, it triggered a domino effect, and others spoke up too.”
A study by CIRCLE found that 43 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds reported that Parkland shooting influenced their voting choices “somewhat” with 20 percent saying it influenced their votes “a lot.” The same study showed that almost two-thirds of youth said that had paid ‘some’ or ‘a lot’ of attention to news about the Parkland shooting.
Separate research showed that compared to 2016, youth were three times as likely to have attended a political demonstration such as a march in 2018. Youth were also more likely to have signed a petition, followed political accounts on social media, or displayed a sticker or sign in support of a candidate.
Abby Kiesa, Director of Impact at CIRCLE, explained that these impressive statistics are a result of hard work and that there is no “one message for all youth that will be integral to turning out to vote.”
“Too many conversations about youth civic engagement rely on thinking that ‘enthusiasm,’ ‘buzz’ or a candidate will automatically create scaled engagement,” Kiesa said in an email, “but a lot of work is usually behind increased youth engagement, often by youth themselves and deliberate outreach to [other young people].”
Kiesa spoke about other research that CIRCLE has done, what they have learned, and what they are still trying to discover.
“Research has never found one panacea for increasing youth turnout because many factors affect turnout, including factors that start before someone reaches 18 years old. For some youth, it’s logistical factors that are barriers. For others, it’s a lack of concrete info. And, for some, it’s because they don’t think their voice matters. This is why I see a lot of youth groups starting with local issues that young people talk about impacting their lives and how that connects to voting.”
In Parkland, that local issue was school safety, and young peoples lives were undeniably affected as they were forced to bury their friends, classmates, and teachers. More than a year later, they have begun to make changes, but their fight is far from over.
On the morning after the 2018 midterms, the March For Our Lives official Twitter account tweeted, along with a chart showing the bump in young voters: “We all made history with the largest youth turnout in 25 years! We will perpetuate this life-saving conversation until we eradicate gun violence and have morally just leaders in office. Thanks to all the young people that have supported us since the beginning. We will win!”
That same day, Delaney Tarr, one of the students that survived the shooting at MSD and founded March For Our Lives, also shared her thoughts on Twitter.
