Turnout Is the Key to Any Electoral Victory. Will Young Voters Show Up?

By Ernest Owens


because the election approaches, some younger voters are grappling with whether or not they plan to show up to the polls.


In Pennsylvania, a battleground state that turned red in support for President Donald Trump in 2016, some have noticed the current state of politics a turnoff to voting altogether.


“I have rather lost any categorize kind of faith or respect for government,” says Robyn Ryan, 29, from Philadelphia. “I am considering not to vote. I realize [it seems] anti-American to do so, although I feel I am an overjoyed American and no one can tell me otherwise.”


Ryan, who self-identifies as a “independent disguised as a Democrat,” believes that voting has “become much less of by the people and for the people… I don't visualize the point anymore in voting up until I visualize real viable change. It's not a matter of being unsure, it's more a matter that in the end do we Residents of the United States even have a mention at all?”


“I only vote because there really are so several members of my community experiencing voter suppression who desire to vote and who cannot vote for reasons behind their control,” says Witt L., 30, who says they “do it for the folks in my family member and community who can't because of systemic oppression.” “For me, it's much less about ‘civic duty’ because I don't believe that I have a duty to a government of a nation that lets people like me perish on a usual basis from things that can be conveniently solved. Aside from that, I may care less.”


According to the Pew Studies Center, Millennials are projected to surpass Baby Boomers because the nation’s largest living adult generation in 2019, while also matching the latter in their share of the American electorate (31%). Nevertheless, only 46% of millennials (ages 18–35 years old) voted in the last presidential election, leaving several to wonder if such low turnout will take place this November.


At the other end of the political spectrum, some millennial Republicans are more passionate. “This is an exhilarating election, nevertheless it is also visceral in nature,” says Amber Ashley Parker, one of the youngest elected Republican Ward Executive Committee people in her district at age 30.


Parker, who has been volunteering for voter registration programs and hosting intimate conversations with companions and colleagues, believes current national issues, like Brett Kavanaugh SCOTUS confirmation, might play a key position at the November polls. “The calamity witnessed at the Senate Judicial Hearings seem to have agitated and invigorated voters. Whether that's good or bad...Well, I guess that depends on the election and if your candidate wins or not.”


Political organizers working in other battleground states are also feeling the uncertainty in getting out the vote. Jia Ireland, Regional Field Director for One Campaign for Michigan, is starting to feel the “burnout” of canvassing weeks away from November 6.


“Well I’m tired and burnt out, to be honest...But I realize the work has to be done,” Ireland, 25, says. “One of the big challenges we are facing is getting volunteers in to help canvass neighborhoods and phone bank. We realize we need to build trust and relationships in our communities, although there’s only so much field organizers can do without volunteers assistance.”


A June 2018 poll From society Religion Studies Institute and the Atlantic revealed that only 28% of millennials between the ages 18 to 29 mention “absolutely certain” they are going to vote in November, compared to 74% of Baby Boomers. And while millennials overwhelmingly vote for Democrats (and still prefer them even if they are registered as a Independent), they are still thought unreliable voters.


“I will be voting in this upcoming election...I plan to vote in each election up until the day I die,” says Omar Sabir, a Philadelphia organizer who recently put together a website called Vote Philly Vote to stimulate more millennials to vote. In 2013, Sabir was elected as a Philadelphia Traffic Court Judge in 2013, only for the Pennsylvania General Assembly to abolish the position shortly later. “My faith was low in the political process,” Sabir says. “I believed not participating, however I dug down and continued to contributor for what I believe.”


Sabir hopes that several millennials show up to the polls on November, despite their personalized dissatisfaction. “Midterm elections are most important, they are just as key as presidential elections. Those before us have sacrificed so much for the correct for us to participate in the electoral process, we can’t let them down.”


Ernest Owens is an award-winning journalist and CEO of Ernest Media Empire, LLC. His work has been featured on CNN, BET, USA Today, NBC, NPR, and Philadelphia magazine.


Ever wondered how several candidates under age 30 are running in your state? MTV News has got you covered. Click here for the map.