What can be done to help young people vote?
By: Mary Wilson, Opinions Editor
In the 2016 election, college students “voted at a rate of 48.3 percent,” according to a study by Tufts University. This is up from 45.3 percent in 2012. Still, this is low. Census.gov reports that “voting rates have also historically varied according to age, with older Americans generally voting at higher rates than younger Americans.” In short: the older a person gets, the more likely they are to vote.
So why don’t young people, especially college students, vote?
Some of the possible barriers to college student voting are relatively easy to identify: Washington’s Top News (wtop.com) claims that many college students don’t know where to buy a postage stamp to mail in their absentee ballots. Other possible reasons, such as voter identification laws, are more controversial. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), voter ID laws “are a part of an ongoing strategy to roll back decades of progress on voting rights.” “Seven states have strict photo ID laws,” where voters must show a government-issued photo ID if they want to cast a regular ballot.
In Texas, for example, concealed weapons permits are valid for voting. Student ID cards are not. As if that wasn’t enough, a Caltech/MIT study found that “minority voters are more frequently questioned about ID than are white voters.”
Interestingly, the same Tufts University study claims that although “voting rates increased from 2012 to 2016 in all academic fields of study.” However, “social science majors voted at significantly higher rates than STEM majors.”
Aside from voter suppression tactics— like ID laws—and lack of knowledge about postage stamps, many college students feel disillusioned with the political system.
Take the 2016 presidential election, for example. Bernie Sanders rallied many young people, much like Barack Obama did in 2008 and 2012, but when Hillary Clinton got the Democratic nomination, people were unmotivated. For those that did go out and vote for Clinton, seeing Trump win the electoral college was a slap in the face.
And here we have a conundrum. We are told to vote, to do our part to put the people we want into public office. However, voting is difficult, and some politicians are striving to make it more difficult for young people and minority groups.
So what can be done?
First, register to vote. Stlouis-mo.gov asserts that Missori residents can register at “any public library, health and social services o ces, and the Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), as well as schools or other tax- supported public agencies with a Deputy Registrar on site.”
If someone can’t get to one of those places, registration is also possible at sos.mo.gov.
Make a plan for election day. Check on neighbors who might not have a way to get to the polls: people without their own mode of transportation, the elderly and people with disabilities.
There are voter hotlines: most notably Election Protection, which can be reached at 866-OUR-VOTE (866- 687-8683).
For those of us with white privilege: we are unlikely to be questioned about our ID. We can–and should–use this to speak out against voter suppression tactics.
