16 December 2008
Young Voters Storm the Polls
This article is excerpted from the IIP publication Sketchbook USA, a richly illustrated volume that depicts Americans at work, at play, in their communities, and engaging in civic life. View and download the fully formatted Sketchbook.
The percentage of Americans who actually exercise their right to vote declined during the second half of the 20th century. No single reason explains this trend. Some citizens may feel that their single vote does not make a difference; some may lose interest in campaigns run primarily through the media. Others may simply be too busy to go to the polls every time there is an election.
An apparent shift in the trend occurred between the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections when voter turnout increased, particularly among young people, who traditionally vote in smaller numbers than older citizens. The graph displays voting patterns for two groups — 18- to 29-year-olds and voters aged 30 and over — in presidential elections since 1972, the first election in which 18-year-olds could vote.
Some of the credit for increased young voter turnout has to go to groups that banded themselves together with that express purpose. From Rock the Vote to Declare Yourself, efforts to engage young Americans in the political process have been paying off, registering millions of voters between the ages of 18 and 29.
In 1990 members of the U.S. recording industry founded Rock the Vote, and since then its name has become synonymous with the power to influence elections, reflected in headlines such as “The Young Did Indeed Rock the Vote” and “Can Technology Rock the Vote?” The organization has produced public service announcements, television specials, and concerts starring celebrity entertainers who encourage young people to become involved and exercise their power in the voting booth.
Rock the Vote has evolved with the times, registering voters on its own Web site (www.rockthevote.com), as well as through Facebook (www.facebook.com). In recent years, Rock the Vote has gone international, inspiring similar organizations in Australia, Ireland, and Mexico.
Declare Yourself describes itself as “a national nonpartisan, nonprofit campaign to energize and empower every eligible 18-year-old in America to register and vote.” Founded in 2003 by television producer Norman Lear, Declare Yourself (www.declareyourself.com) also uses celebrity spokespersons to connect with young audiences and sponsors a voter education initiative for secondary school students who soon will be eligible to vote. The organization has partnered with other online powerhouses, including MySpace (www.myspace.com), Yahoo! (www.yahoo.com), YouTube (www.youtube.com), and Google (www.google.com).
Together, Rock the Vote and Declare Yourself take credit for registering upwards of three million new voters in recent elections.
Kids Learning to Vote
Reaching the age of 18 in the United States makes a person eligible to vote but not necessarily educated to vote. A unique program called Kids Voting USA® (KVUSA) has been working to prepare youngsters to become voters since 1988.
KVUSA works with community-based organizations, school systems, and local election officials to teach civic education to students in kindergarten through secondary school. Started in Arizona, the program now has affiliates in 26 states and Washington, D.C., attempting to prepare kids to be good voters – how to find out who the candidates are, and what they stand for. In order to cast a thoughtful ballot, voters may also need to research the pros and cons of other issues that might be on the ballot.
What makes Kids Voting (www.kidsvotingusa.org) effective is that students gain real-life practice in how to vote. In the run-up to Election Day, they learn about the candidates for local, state, and national offices and about ballot questions on state and local issues — the same ones their parents will vote on. On Election Day, the kids cast their votes in mock elections.
“The purpose [of Kids Voting] is to teach young people at earlier ages how to be reasonable citizens by exercising their democratic voting rights and paying attention to the news and candidates and issues,” says Ruthi Rapp, a Kids Voting organizer in Kansas. “And to learn an appreciation for the fact that they have that privilege, which doesn’t exist in some countries around the world.”
