Still, despite Obama and the Democratic Party’s best efforts to recharge the youth vote that helped give the Democrats a substantial victory in 2008, on November 2, 2010, it was the Republican party that emerged victorious, managing to recapture the majority in the House of Representatives with 239 seats and effectively loosening the majority grip of the Democrats in the Senate, with a respectable 46 seats to Democrat’s 51. Just two years ago, the youth’s presence at the ballot boxes influenced the outcome of the 2008 presidential elections. Yet, did the youth’s lack of presence during the 2010 midterm elections result in one of the largest shifts in power in our nation’s history?
Though the 2008 presidential election saw an increase of 52% of youth voters, this year’s midterm elections saw the number drop dramatically, with only 20.9% of the youth vote heading back out to the ballots. According to political analyst Kelli Goff, this lull in participation—in not only the youth, but in all demographics—is not anything new. “Voter turnout is always lower during midterm elections across demographic groups,” says Goff. “Young voters are no different--less of them turnout too.”
In spite of the fact that lower voter turnout is common for midterm elections, it can’t be denied that there was a marked slip in enthusiasm and energy within the youth demographic between the 2008 presidential election and the 2010 midterm election. In 2008, the youth vote was notably enraptured by the charismatic Obama and headed out to the polls to enthusiastically proclaim their support for him and his promises for “CHANGE” but in 2010, the youth vote no longer had such an accessible and enigmatic figure to rally behind. Says Goff, “I think the primary difference in this particular election is that more young voters who voted in 2008 were motivated specifically by Obama, but he wasn’t on the ballot this year so some of them felt less motivated to turn out.”
Historically, the enthusiasm of the youth vote has fluctuated through the decades in direct correlation to either the current issues of the election year or the charisma and ability of the candidates to reach out to the youth vote. In the 1960s, for instance, the youth demographic was very active in reaction to the Vietnam War and the draft. In 1996, President Bill Clinton played a large part in renewing an interest in electoral politics within the youth throughout the years he ran. Following in these footsteps, Obama’s 2008 campaign started another revitalization of interest within the youth to vote.
“A certain energy is infused when youth is involved,” says Deva Woodley, a professor at The New School for Social Research who focuses on the historical patterns of the youth vote, “It creates a cultural movement. Obama created a cultural movement. He was used as a figurehead.”
Indeed, the 2008 Presidential Election was rife with pop culture media influence, as celebrities like Oprah and Robert DeNiro clamored to show their support for Obama and donate to his campaign. With Shepard Fairey’s iconic Obama portrait becoming the viral symbol for the campaign, 2008 also became the most successful example thus far of how social networking websites like Twitter and Facebook, and the technology of the Internet can become powerful tools for reaching out to the young demographic. These connections made Obama seem more cool and relatable, as if he was just another friend who was only a mouse click and wall post away.
This year, you cannot go to any candidate for either party’s websites without finding a link to their Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube accounts. With 98% of the 18-29-year-old demographic using social networking sites, the 2010 midterm elections saw an increase in the political candidates reaching out to potential voters through these sites. Despite this boost in politicians utilizing the internet in their campaigns and Facebook and Twitter promoting the idea of voting with “I Voted” graphics and trending topics, this was not actually indicative of the level of enthusiasm the midterm elections seemed to produce.
While Obama still has his supporters, many of them didn’t even bother to come out and vote, citing various reasons from being too busy, not even being aware of the elections, and not believing a vote would even count.
Andrew Higgins, 22, of Detroit, Michigan says he didn’t vote in the Midterm Elections because he didn’t know when the actual voting would occur, and yet when asked if he voted in the Presidential Election he responds with a much more enthusiastic, “Hell yeah, that was a big deal.” To him, voting does matter but not many people do it unless it’s for a big election.
Another 21-year-old male in Chinatown agrees with Higgins’ sentiment, “I think it was the hype during the presidential elections a couple years ago that really got me to vote. Now, I don't really see what it was all for.”
According to William John Cox, a political analyst, this apathy to the midterm election and feeling of powerlessness in the election may stem from the financial issues that continue to plague the country, causing more and more young people to live at home. They feel like Obama had promised them “CHANGE in the 2008 elections, but many feel he still hasn’t delivered on the promise.
Shane, a 24-year-old youth voter in the Financial District area concurs with the idea that Obama has failed to live up to his hype, “I loved Obama and am proud to admit that I voted for him, but I don't think he's taking the proper measures to combat this country's deficit.”
In a PBS political analysis report, Rock the Vote executive director Heather Smith emphasized how Obama’s 2008 campaign allowed young voters to feel that they could be directly involved in shaping and changing the nation positively, which ultimately brought them to the polls. Obama was a leader; someone the youth could look up to and get behind.
Yet when the election was said and done and Obama finally got to business something changed somewhere down the line. Many hopeful young voters expecting immediate “CHANGE” were met with disappointment and the feeling of broken promises. Though much of the two million youth voters in the 2008 presidential election had failed to show up for the 2010 midterms, how can the youth demographic be reawakened for the 2012 presidential election?
“I think that they can be reengaged and reenergized,” continues Smith, “But someone needs to push that path forward”
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