Young voters notoriously neglect the importance of their voices in elections. Only a portion of Americans who are eligible to vote take that upon themselves. Concerns today are involving a specific demographic who routinely underperform at the ballot box on Election Day, this particular group is known as “millennials.” Every vote matters, especially if one falls into this crucial demographic. These young voters are needed more than ever to impact the election and influence future polls.  

     Diverse opinions shroud the voices of young adults in participating in key political issues in our society today. Major conflicts in elections increasingly concern the intellect of ages 18 to 29. Although these millennials are vital in having a solid knowledge base on political issues to actively partake in the polls, schools continue to fail on educating on this topic. Young adults feel as if they are irrelevant to the social, economic, and political events that happen in the world, and rely on the older, more experienced voters to make decisions that will affect them. Young voters have a fixed mindset of politics and different economic debates. They believe it does not fall on them nor is it their responsibility to impact these relevant debates. This sentiment is congruent with the feelings of young voters who believe that their vote doesn't count, which is their basis of reasoning to not participate in the elections. What they fail to realize is the reality, all votes count especially the votes contributed by young voters that fall into this age group. They are a powerful political force representing nearly half of the voting population. Statistics in earlier elections prove that the collective “youth vote” can ultimately undulate the election. Yet older Americans are more likely to show up at the polls to vote. 

     Young people, like myself, hold powers to mold the government and future policies. Personally though I have never found politics or global world-wide topics necessarily in my repertoire of interests. This lack of interest, supports the fact schools have not fully integrated these topics into my knowledge reservoir. I am just realizing that as an individual in the United States the majority of our key policies have been established upon our Constitutional freedoms and laws. I am slowly understanding the importance of each vote and how each vote is relevant to maintaining freedoms - life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Young people have so much potential to offer and their voices should be heard at the voting polls, but some experts suggest that the process is not being presented to these voters as early as it should be. 

     What is truly ironic is that many topics discussed, in debate, impacted by elections, affect youth and millennials such as college tuition, future employment, health care, and minimum wage, which are needed to have the youth speaking out yet their voices remain silent. Since millennials especially were negatively impacted by the Great Recession in 2007, it is critical for young voters to show up at the polls, start voting, speaking for themselves, and being the ones who impact their own future. The youth may not care now, but in four years that could all change their radical opinion on politics when they step into the challenges and struggles of adulthood. There is no excuse to just “not know,” when we live in a highly tech-savvy world, where technology makes it easier and more accessible to summit votes and find information on the candidates. 

     However, some people may say that voting should not be pushed on people and it should be by their own free will to let their voices be heard and contribute to prudent decisions in government. In fact, people should have the choice under the constitution whether or not to vote, but voting numbers have been plummeting so in these times having every vote counts to elect new government officials. 

     In conclusion, the most recent polls have shown statistics of a lower percentage of young voters getting out to vote. In the 2014 poll, less than twenty percent of young adults voted-the lowest rate ever recorded, according to the United States census data. What is uniquely surprising about this fiasco is by 2019 millennials became the largest living generation in America. This could easily sway any election if these voters showed up. Let’s encourage young voters to step out of their comfort zone and begin to find their voices within democracy, because their votes truly do matter.