September 1, 2004
I love the way that my jam-packed RNC schedule allows me to be exposed to so many thoughts and ideas that the question when I get home is not what to write about, but what not to. Coming home from a party honoring the Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, a number was stuck in my head: 9 percent.
The Harvard Institute of Politics honored me with another invitation to be part of a panel discussing the voting environment on college campuses. It was held at the Harvard Club of New York, a sprawling hidden facility on 44th street in Manhattan, in an enormous ballroom with 80 foot ceilings and dark wood as far as the eye can see. It truly upheld the standards of the institution.
My fellow panelist and the scholar of the group, Professor David King, remarked that only 9 percent of first-time eligible voters, meaning 18 and 19 year olds, voted in the last election, by far the lowest turnout of any age group. (It was so low that I heard they were outvoted by dead people in the corrupt counties.) In my last column, I noted that Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN), the majority leader in the Senate, was once one of those young people who did not vote.
In the 1996 election, when I was 18, I was one of those people, too.
As we’re getting deeper into the convention, I’m beginning to understand more of the barriers that contribute to nine out of 10 possible new voters missing this opportunity. Voting that first time is a big step, and losing your voting virginity by depositing your ballot in the ballot box is not something to take lightly. Sure, you’ve talked about it with your friends in the locker room, and you think you can imagine what it will be like. But you’re always a little hesitant, and when that opportunity to pull the trigger that first time comes, on the first Tuesday in November, we often let it slip by because we don’t feel ready.
The audience consisted entirely of pages for the convention, ages 18 to 20. One of them asked if we really did want young people to turn out if they indeed were the least informed on the issues and the most easily swayed by fancy TV ads. That attitude could become a self-fulfilling prophecy. I would like to take issue with the idea that we don’t necessarily want young people voting because we don’t trust their ability to determine the candidate that best represents their values.
New voters need to understand that few people have this stuff “mastered.” The amount of information can be intimidating at times, but those people who appear to “know it all” often work in politics or are “experts” in their field. Few people who work real jobs or go to school full time are true “masters” of the issues. And trust me, there are a lot of uninformed, ignorant older people voting, but no one is coming down on them. At worst, we’re countering their less informed vote with young voters that are less informed on different issues they think are important to them.
For those new to the political game, however, I now realize that the convention period is a confusing time for first-time voters to begin getting informed. The majority of young people, especially first-time voters, identify themselves as independent, so they don’t just vote down party lines.
They have to choose a temporary or permanent party affiliation from new information, and if they had started paying attention to the conventions the last two days, they would have seen John McCain, Arnold Schwarzenegger (kudos for a very positive and inclusive speech), Rudy Giuliani, and Michael Bloomberg all come out and endorse President Bush. But if they have been paying closer attention to news media outlets, they would also know that those candidates are considered more socially moderate than Bush or the Republican Party platform. They all differ with Bush and the party on major issues like abortion. Young voters may remember the way Bush and McCain attacked each other in 2000. Yet if we tune in today, everyone is best friends, and no one argues.
The presentation of a unified party at the convention must create a disconnect with voters not used to that “accepted” front. What young people need to understand is that these politicians still disagree, but they are putting aside their differences for the good of the party. It’s just that time of year.
The Democrats have done the same thing, trying to present a unified front at their convention, even though six months ago we all remember their candidates for president and vice president were questioning each other’s ability to hold those very positions.
One does not have to believe in an entire party’s platform to want to vote for the candidate. If we go by stereotypes or even the concepts discussed tonight at the convention, not everyone there is for the war in Iraq and against federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research and for federal funding for religious charities and pro-life and for school vouchers and against universal health care and…. And every Democrat does not espouse the reverse of each of those stances.
This disconcerting aspect of this false appearance of unity is rarely discussed in the media, because no one is really looking from the perspective of young voters like those of us at Smackdown Your Vote!. Newcomers may want to learn from the approach that WWE Superstar and Smackdown Your Vote spokesman Mark Henry will be using this fall.
Right now, Mark considers himself an undecided voter. He is attempting to sift through the seemingly limitless amount of information out there. When I asked him how he planned to make a decision, when his stances on the issues are scattered among both parties, he told me:
“The most important issue for me centers on education. Growing up not being a great student and not coming from a family with the financial means to send me to college, I put my entire focus into athletics. That was the only way that I would be able to go to school. There are a lot of other kids in the situation that I was in.
“If I want to see one thing, it would be that the government create an effective system to help better allow minorities, and all kids, to be able to go to college if they make the grade. Deserving kids should not be denied educational opportunities simply because of the financial situation of their parents.
“So reading up on that issue from both parties, whoever’s policy is the strongest will get my vote. Whether it is the situation in Iraq, education, health care, abortion, stem-cell research, or the financial status of our country, everyone has an issue that can inspire them.
“I hope all people can do what I’ve done and take the time to learn about the policies of both sides, because it makes going to vote easier, and it can make one feel confident in his or her purpose.”
Mark has a great system for the first-time, unconfident voter. Not feeling like you know enough is really no excuse, and really not true. If a week before the election you feel uninformed, take a week to read up. It’s not that difficult. Then go vote. There is no test. You know when you feel informed enough to vote, and as long as you have given a solid effort to study the issues, no one can question the choice you make. That’s what smacking down your vote is all about.
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