With the upcoming election, voters across the United States are experiencing one of the most heated presidential races in American history. The topic of voting has become increasingly relevant, as high school seniors across the country have once again become part of the democratic process. However, in the most recent elections, citizens have often seen two candidates that are widely disliked and choose to abstain instead of picking one of them. This trend has led to a low voter turnout especially with voters aged 18 to 24.

American Government teacher Lindsey Kornfeld observed the lack of conversation around the voting process with young adults. Many people feel that there is not enough participation from young voters. Kornfeld is part of this group.

“The 18 to 24 year old voter is the least likely age demographic to vote… we’re also seeing differences in Gen Z and voter disenfranchisement,” Kornfeld said.

Redwood’s required American Government course is believed to be a way of educating students and new voters. This year almost all of the American Government classes were stacked into the fall in order to prioritize voter education for seniors: a call that was made by the course’s teachers following a brief discussion including administration. The class is meant to provide an adequate foundation surrounding the election for all young voters.
“Our goal is to create an educated voter,” Kornfeld said. “We’re focused on the foundations of government, so that you’re voting with knowledge, instead of just voting based on what you hear on the radio or what you see on social media or what your parents think.”

In the U.S., voting has been an important part of the democratic process. Historically, California has been known to be a blue state since the late 1980’s so it is often believed that certain votes in California don’t matter as much as they do in swing states. Despite this, Senior Audrey McMillan is a strong believer in the importance of participating and voting.

“I think it’s important to participate in our democracy… I feel like it’s a way you can maybe make a little change, have your voice heard in our government,” McMillan said.

According to Kornfeld, voting is a person’s way of interacting with the president and other authoritative figures in office. The leadership within the country is theoretically supposed to see individual votes and adjust their policies around the popular majority.

“If we don’t vote, they’re going to keep going with business as usual,” Kornfeld said.

So what stops young people from voting? One possible issue is the lack of advertising and exposure to the voting process. Many students including senior John Anderluh believe voting should be taught to students in a more mainstream way.

“I know that it’s important [to vote], but I feel like at Redwood, they don’t talk about actually voting when you turn 18,” Anderluh said.

In recent years, there has been a common trend of seniors like Anderluh who have opted to take the American Government class online. Due to this, they are unable to learn about voter registration and the foundational knowledge about the election.

Anderluh still plans to vote, though, and feels that he is informed about important issues and policies of the two presidential candidates. On his own, he was able to learn about the process and didn’t have any trouble registering to vote.

“It was super easy to register,” Anderluh said. “I just looked up ‘register to vote online,’ and it was the first link that popped up, and then you put your information in. It’s quick.”

McMillan, on the other hand, hasn’t learned how to register yet. She is also in the same boat as Anderluh, and is taking the American Government course online. However, she believes there isn’t sufficient education on the voting process outside of this course.

“No one’s sat me down and been like, ‘this is how you vote’,” McMillan said. “I haven’t even registered yet. I don’t know how to register.”

Many don’t know that when acquiring a drivers license in California they are automatically pre-registered to vote.

According to Kornfeld, California has one of the quickest registration processes in the country.

“California has made it really easy to vote. We’re a universal mail-in state, so if you’re registered, it gets mailed to your house,” Kornfeld said. “It’s hard to avoid voting if all you have to do is bubble some stuff in and put it back in your mailbox.”

Another possible factor in low voter turnout is the stigma surrounding political conversation. When peers don’t discuss hard topics with each other, people tend to push it to the back of their mind and choose to forget about it. Anderluh believes the stigma stems from the fear of disagreements within friends.

“People might have different political opinions and beliefs, and you don’t really want to steer [the conversation towards politics],” Anderluh said.

McMillan sees political discussions as a useful tool to help her form her own opinions by looking at different perspectives.

“I honestly do wish people talked about [political topics] more, just so I could get more people’s opinions and have more knowledge on the subject,” McMillan said.

At the end of the day, it is on the American people to decide who the next president will be. The youth voters are the future of this country. When people abstain from the voting process, it’s one less voice being heard by our government. Kornfeld encourages young adults to participate in the American democratic process in hopes that it will create good habits of becoming a returning voter.

“If you make something [like voting] a part of your life, the earlier you start, the more likely you are to continue it,” Kornfeld said.

To check your registration status go to: https://voterstatus.sos.ca.gov/
To register to vote go to: https://covr.sos.ca.gov/
To pre-register to vote go to: https://covr.sos.ca.gov/