There’s a well-worn saying in American politics that sums up the way the college students interact with voting: “If you don’t vote, you can’t complain.”
To put it another way, if you ’ re not going to take the time to go vote, you, in one way or another, are affirming the way the local and national governments operate.
Much of the electorate and political world sees “ millennials ” this way. To them, we are just a bunch of apathetic kids who spend all their time complaining about the status quo without taking steps to change it.
And, sadly, they seem to be more right than wrong. In a state in which millions of people vote, those between the ages of 18 to 24 are wildly underrepresented.
This is not a new story. Ever since the 1972 presidential election, the failure of the rumored massive “ youth vote ” to kick Nixon out of office has plastered a “ lazy ” sticker on young voters. Every election season, politically active students create event after event to get the 18- to 24-year-old demographic off of their Wiis and into the voting booths.
And nothing happens. Because, to some extent, we ’ ve internalized the idea that nothing can really change. That we ’ re more and more comfortable with the idea that voting doesn ’ t really do anything. That, in the end, none of it is worth getting off the couch.
In order for this stigma to finally die, we need to change the way we think about voting. Going in there and picking your candidate doesn’t just give them a better shot to win — it's also an act of coming out and being counted as someone who cares about the way the world is run.
If more young people get out and vote, more candidates are going to focus on issues that affect youth, no matter the politics. The reason candidates can go through an entire election cycle without mentioning college education is because they know that they can win on the votes of the older demographics.
So, go vote Tuesday. Even if everyone you vote for loses, it ’ ll be worth the while. Because next time elections come around, the political world will know that your vote is up for grabs and that your complaints and ideas are worth listening to.