I’ve wanted to ask what I think has been on a lot of mind’s lately.
Is Donald Trump really going to be the next president of these United States of America?
He very well may be if you don’t visit the voting booth on Tuesday, November 8. You’ll either think “how could of this happened?” or “who cares?”
Regardless, there will be a new president elected that night and less than one year from now he or she will be sworn-in during the inauguration in front of the White House.
I’m not asking you to vote for a Democrat or influence you by sharing what I do not like about Trump or any other candidate, but I am asking you to use your vote wisely.
Do not let your vote go to waste knowing full well that turning 18 in the USA gives us a right to show up to the polls and vote for something we believe in.
I would rather not use the age-old adage of “taking a stand” or “being a voice” for what you believe in. I want to stress how certain politicians count on the youth vote not showing up to the polls on Election Day in November. That irks me and it should irk you too.
These candidates think that we don’t care about our future and will happily carry on with that notion. Maybe they think we are dumb, stupid or blind but as long we don’t show face at the polls, they have every right to those claims.
According to the Pew Research Center, among the “non-voters” are under 30, racially diverse and less affluent, under $30,000 yearly. Those characteristics represents quite a large number of students on this campus. As for me, not only do I plan on voting, but I will in fact be hitting all three of these “non-voter” characteristics: Young, Mexican/Asian and less-affluent.
Without dating myself, I have seen and voted in several presidential elections. Let’s just say I was part of the “But wait…George W. Bush lost the popular vote” crowd.
I remember feeling cheated in a way that election night, but there is no doubt that I felt such pride that I participated in the election.
I’ve seen campaigns by MTV to “Rock the Vote” and “Vote or Die” over the last few elections, and have seen an enormous movement in the use of social media to reach the younger vote.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the candidates who are trying their best to reach us using Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Yes, I said US! I don’t think many baby boomers are going to Twitter to follow a live tweet of a debate or YouTube to watch a town hall discussion. If politicians think for a second they can gain a new voter by showing up on your news feed, they will do it.
Now that the Iowa caucus results have concluded, which is the first major indicator of front-runner candidates; the number of candidates has dwindled to five.
For the Republican Party: Senator Ted Cruz, Donald Trump and Senator Mark Rubio.
For the Democratic Party: Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders.
I implore you to align yourself with a candidate and take a stand on Election Day.
For those of you who are not 18 yet but will be by November 8, 2016 or have not registered to vote, it is a lot easier than you think. The old school way made you track down a form at the DMV to mail in. Now you can register online, which is no more difficult than applying for a California BOG fee waiver. You can get started at: http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/
