Emily Brand
News Editor
On Tuesday, Sept. 26 during the lunch block, eligible seniors had the opportunity to register to vote for the upcoming election. The League of Young Women Voters set up a table to encourage young adults to participate in the upcoming election by registering. Many members of the senior class will not be able to vote, but the registration is a reminder that they will soon be old enough to contribute their opinion to the decision of who will lead our country.
Kathryn Tohir, Co-Chair of Voters’ Services for the League of Women Voters, explained the purpose of setting up a table in the lounge for seniors to register. “The League of Women Voters, in its role of assisting the town registrars, hopes to make access to the electoral process as easy as possible for all residents of New Canaan, including its youngest voters,” she said.
AP Government and Politics teacher Stephen Vehslage explained that people aged 18-21 have the lowest voter demographic turnout. “There are multiple factors [that keep young voters from voting],” Mr. Vehslage said. “One is indifference about politics. I think some people choose not to participate because they lack information about policies and candidates, and so they don’t feel like they’re equipped to make an educated decision.”
Ms. Tohir agreed with Mr. Vehslage that registering is dependent on being informed and aware of the community. “Some don’t realize it’s necessary to register in order to be eligible to vote, and some don’t realize that the process to register is not difficult,” Ms. Tohir said. “Of course, there are those who are simply not interested in the political process, and it’s most difficult to reach those people.”
Senior Aly Schmidt, who will be legal to vote for the 2012 presidential election, finds it important to keep up with what is happening in politics. “Now that I can vote, watching the candidates debate and hearing what is going on in our country seems more interesting,” Aly said. “I know that I am no longer someone that sits on the sidelines begging for the elections to end, but someone who is intrigued by [the election]and will turn on the news channels myself.”
According to Mr. Vehslage, if more young voters participated in the elections, they would truly be able to make a difference. “Well, there are a lot of them and if they got up to vote they could affect the outcome,” he said. “Young people inject energy and spirit if they’re engaged.”
Ms. Tohir sees the presidential candidates trying to connect with young voters by showing their interest in the younger demographic. “Because it’s such a large block, candidates are interested in addressing the issues that affect young voters, which brings their concerns to the forefront.”
Senior Tim Casavant is taking AP Government and Politics in school and said that the course has helped him pay more attention to politics since he will be legal to vote in the upcoming election. “I think I play a crucial role as a young voter because it is our job as youth to pave the way for our generation. My vote counts as much as anyone else’s.”
Ms. Tohir emphasized how important it is to participate in voting. “Voting is one of the most important rights we have as citizens of the United States, and the League strongly encourages everyone to register to vote, to take time to learn about the candidates and issues, and to vote on November 6th!”
Tim also wants to make sure that he assumes an active role in the elections. “I think it’s definitely important for young adults to vote because the outcome may not matter to us at the moment but a few years from now when we are taking on bigger responsibilities it will make a big difference.”
