Why 18 to 25 Year Olds Don't Vote

By watching the news, reading the paper, or listening to the radio, most Americans perceive the voting-age youth as a not-so-voting youth. It's a plague that has caught the media by fire, and is well justified by the numbers. Statistics clearly show that the youth doesn't vote as much as other age groups. Statistics clearly show that election outcomes could be much different if the youth were to vote. Statistics clearly show, well, a lot of things. But I can tell you, as one of those 18-25 year-old Americans, that the problem lies far beneath the statistics, far beneath the mindset of the young generation, and into the voting system itself.

We're not a lazy demographic, honestly. We care passionately about politics, we care passionately about our country, and we participate in political movements as much if not more than anyone else.

One of our biggest claims to fame has been our feverish enthusiasm for political candidates through internet promoting, voting on polls, attending rallies, staging walkouts, all while not voting. Do you really think we'd go to all of those troubles, watch the news nightly, and spend entire nights hitting the refresh button on news sites if we didn't want to vote? Of course we want to vote. The politicians running decide our country's future, and just as importantly, our own. No, the problem is not laziness nor is it that we do not want to vote. The problem is that it's so damn hard.

Our age group has the obstacle of college. Several of us leave for college after high school, heading away from our homes in search of an education. Often we're in state, but often we're out of state. Regardless of where we are, millions of us leave our homes and we leave our counties. Election time rolls around and we can't go to the polls. No, we need to go through our given town's absentee procedures to get a ballot that may or may not arrive to us on time. These procedures often differ by town, and we're trying to find all of this out while off on a college campus somewhere, getting directions by phone or website. You think registering is inconvenient? Try getting an absentee ballot.