The class of 2022 had the first opportunity to vote in a state or federal election on Tuesday, June 7, but many were not enthusiastic about the idea.
The California midterm elections had many offices up for a vote and re-election. These included our lieutenant Governor and many minor postings throughout the state.
Lack of enthusiasm and interest was common regarding the election, simply because not everyone was informed on the event.
“I didn’t even know there was an election coming up,” senior Emma Hague said. “I haven’t done my research yet, not as of right now, but I try to keep up with politics.”
Senior Brian Goode said that he knew there was an election coming up, but didn’t really know much about it.
“I know there is an election in 2022 but I didn’t know much about what’s happening locally,” Goode said. “I think the lieutenant governor is up for election, but I don’t really understand who is up for election past that.”
Seniors like Hague and Goode haven’t done much research, but this isn’t the only reason why seniors aren’t voting. Senior Patrick Blankenburg explains how many students feel burnout from recent elections, and are frustrated with the function of California’s politics.
“We do tend to have a lot of center-left [politicians] when you’re voting Democrat,” Blankenburg said. “You have to consider what kind of Democrat is this person, because the Democratic Party in the United States is rather center-right. It’s not really easy to vote for someone who campaigns themselves as the left of Conservative Party. That is too far-right to even say they are moderate.”
Not only do seniors feel burnt out, but many find difficulty voting in the one-party situation that California counties experience.
“I personally am a leftist, so I don’t really think that it’s easy to vote in this state,” Blankenburg said. “ I don’t think there’s any weird perspective though, that I’m looking at.”
Others have a different perspective on why they are unlikely to vote. Government and Economy teacher Kelly Dolan said that they have important activities in their life now.
“I would guess that less than half of my students are going to vote in this election because they have bigger stuff on their plate,” Dolan said. “They’re going to be in their first semester of college or working. I think these are the common reasons teenagers don’t tend to vote [as] often as older people.”
Some seniors still voted, but there was still a significant amount of students who were less likely to vote.
“All I can say is that I haven’t seen any evidence that [Seniors] are aware of the candidates in the upcoming election,” Dolan said. “That does not mean that they are not. I had all my seniors registered [to vote] about last semester when they were studying government. I can guarantee that students of mine that are politically active are planning on voting.”
