Liese Schneider

We’re the Kids in America

On November 3rd, I woke up in a swanky hotel room in downtown Cleveland, Ohio and I got two pieces of devastating news. First, well, I think Jon Stewart said it best, "...I miss voter fraud." Yes, George Bush won in a 'LANDSLIDE'. I guess 3 million votes does seem like a landslide after not winning at all. This burn stung just a bit deeper after working in Ohio to get-out-the-vote.

But then the second blow; while watching various network news outlets there seemed to be an overwhelming concurrence that the youth vote disappointed America, yet again. Now, I didn't work specifically to get young people out to the polls, but I had a sneaking suspicion that Fox News, etc, might not be telling us the whole truth. [gasp]

Well, those lazy, pot-smoking, play-station-hungry youth of America did turn out. In fact, in the 2004 election, young people turned out in record numbers. A grand total of 47% of eligible 18-24 year old voters stormed the ballot boxes (11% more then the 2000 election) for the biggest rise in decades, says a new study from CIRCLE.

Single, white, college-educated woman took the lead this election season with 53% turnout, while married, non-college educated Latino men came in around 36% , CIRCLE's study reveals.

Time to rest on our laurels? I think not. 47% is a step in the right direction, but there's more work to be done. We need more time, energy and money going towards turning our demographic into a powerhouse voting block. (Why should Team Social Security have all the fun?) The second step: we should take the lead. Not just participate, but run and win.

Liese Schneider: Author Bio | Other Posts
Posted at 7:00 AM, Nov 25, 2005 in Democracy | Progressives | The Media
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