Voting day blues (and reds)

Between balancing classes and homework, work and a social life, not to mention getting enough sleep, many young people do not have enough time to catch up on their favorite reality TV show, let alone worry about politics. Casting a vote is the final stage of the voting pro­cess, the first step of which is registering.

Registering to vote is not easy for anyone, which could be why the United States has some of the lowest voter turn­out in the Western world. In a study by the Pew Research Center, based on the most recent national election of each country, the United States ranks 31st out of 34 Western democracies for the number of citizens it has that are regis­tered to vote.

The Federal Election Commission reported that approximately 129 mil­lion people voted in the 2012 presi­dential election, a little over one-third of the total United States population. Because you cannot cast a vote on Elec­tion Day without being registered to do so, a small percentage of the population follows the process through to the vot­ing stage.

It may seem like there is a simple solution to securing more voters: if the government makes the process of regis­tering to vote more accessible to a larger number of people, perhaps more would feel inspired to participate in their right as an American citizen. But in the United States, registering to vote is not meant to be easy.

“The problem in the United States is not voting, it’s registering,” said William Grover, professor of political science. “It is harder to register here because of strict voter registration laws.”

Though voter registration laws vary between states, it is typical that people trying to register must provide some sort of identification — in many cases, a photo ID.

In five states, a college ID does not count as a valid voter ID. Texas, for ex­ample, accepts a Texas concealed hand­gun license as a suitable form of identi­fication, but not a college ID, according to VoteTexas.gov, a website published by the Office of the Texas Secretary of State.

“This is an attempt by the government to disempower non-white, poor, and young people,” said John Hughes, also a professor of political science. However, about young people he adds, “You’re dis­empowering yourselves, because you are not voting anyway. By choosing not to exercise the franchise, you are becoming passive recipients of decisions made by others without your interests at heart.”

Age is More than a Number

“I did not register to vote because I did not understand voting,” said Kelsey Pett, ’16, who is a political science major. Pett is only one of the numerous young adults who decide not to vote. People between the ages of 18 to 24 com­prise the lowest voter turnout rate at the polls. In the most recent national election in 2012, only 38 percent of citizens be­tween the ages of 18-24 voted, according to a study by the United States Census Bureau. Oftentimes, members of the 18-24 year- old cohort are encouraged to get out and vote, but Grover asserts that age is not the problem.

“Voting takes practice,” Grover said. “Once you vote one time, it is likely you will get into the habit of doing it. Young people are not in the habit of doing it.”

Within that cohort, college students in particular must address where and how they would like to vote, especially if they attend an out-of-state institution.

“While away at school, you are a res­ident of that state. College students have the choice whether to vote in-state or by absentee ballot from their home state,” Hughes said.

Often, when deciding how to vote, the best option is to become educated on the candidates and how they are doing in the polls in each state. Then, the students who have the option of choosing which state to vote in can decide to vote wherev­er their ballot counts the most, or wher­ever their candidate of choice has lower numbers in the polls.

“There are more hoops to jump through if registering to vote out-of-state,” Grover said.

“Voting is necessary, but not sufficient.”

The reasons young people do not turn up to the polls are varied. Registration is no simple task, and there are educated choices to be made on where and how to vote. These are not the only factors at play.

“I never really got into politics, be­cause I felt I had better things to do,” said Shawn Roseen ’18, who will be of voting age for the first time in the 2016 national election. “I plan on voting, because I feel it is something I have to do for my coun­try, but I want to become an educated voter first.”

There are more ways to become ed­ucated on political issues than simply learning candidates’ platforms. Grover urges young people to remember that activism and community involvement are also important aspects of a political presence.

“Voting is important because we’re supposed to live in a democracy,” Grover said. “But though voting is necessary, it is not sufficient.”

“As a political science professor, I think the most important function of voting is actually to serve as a first step, a sort of positive ‘gateway drug’ to deeper involve­ment in civic engagement,” said Patricia Siplon, chair of the political science de­partment at St. Michael’s.

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