Voting and Young Adults

 

        By: Kim Harrington

     Since the 2016 election, more younger voters are turning out to vote, according to the Kingston Town Clerk and the young voters.

“The 2020 election was a big deal to me especially because it was my first election voting in and I knew Biden would be a better fit for our country during that time,” Maeve Cleary, a junior communications major at Stonehill College said.

In the article, “Election Week 2020: Young People Increase Turnout, Lead Biden to Victory” published by Circle at Tufts, it said that they estimated that many young people would participate in the 2020 election than in 2016 and their support for Biden was overwhelming and a decisive key in races across America.

“I was nervous at first to vote since it was my first election, but I knew that my life would be a lot better with Biden in office, since the prior four years of presidency has been a mess,” Cleary said.

In Harvard Youth Poll’s 2021 Spring top trends and takeaways, the reported noted that 40% of young Americans expect their lives to become better with the Biden administration as opposed to worse (19%); and 25% said that they did not expect much of a difference.

“We typically see more turnout in a national election, as local elections get a bigger turnout with controversial candidates and potential questions,” Paul Gallagher the Kingston Town Clerk said.

            Gallagher said there was a controversy last year in the community, drawing more voters to the polls.

According to a national poll of America’s 18-to-29-year-olds released by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, “35 percent of young Americans believe that social media has had a negative impact on both their mental health and American democracy,” the survey said.

“We had some big controversy locally last year that included a recall of officers. There was a lot of press and social media awareness that created a greater interest and I also believe the national scene has increased because of the conspiracy theorists pushing unconfirmed actions by others. Social media has not entirely helped Americans physically or mentally, but it does help spread awareness,” Gallagher said.

“It’s difficult to listen to the accusations and innuendos. I went through it with the local election. The trend is about power and not people anymore. I believe that the ‘everyone gets a trophy’ has led to people not being able to accept.” Gallagher said.

Camille Gremza, a junior business management major at Stonehill College voted in the 2020 election by an absentee ballot.

“I was intimidated to go to the booths during my first voting election mostly because there was so much hostility surrounding the entire thing. I feel like not a lot of people my age voted before last year’s election, but I am glad a lot of us came together to change our county,” Gremza said.

“I didn’t want to be the one vote that threw off the entire election and be stuck with the guilt that it could have been my vote that could have made a difference,” Gremza said.

Sofia Hauser, a junior neuroscience major at Union College in New York, did not vote in the 2020 Presidential election.

“It was not out of ignorance or my lack of caring for the future of my country even if it may seem like that. I was tired of the drama of the election and was neutral to both candidates despite the controversy, so I felt like it was better to stay out of it,” Hauser said.

 Kaily Moniz, a senior communications major at Stonehill College did not vote in last year's election because of family differences.

“My immediate family wanted to vote for one of the candidates in 2020, but my cousins disagreed with our choice completely. To avoid any bad blood, I decided to just not vote at all. I was very overwhelmed with it all at the time and wanted to stay out of the election,” Moniz said.

"I plan on voting next time since I know how impactful it can be. I will be going to the booths and think it is important for all of us to take part in the next election," Moniz said.