As the election nears, trends suggest that young people are now more inspired to vote than they have been since at least the 2008 presidential election. More than 1 million Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have already either cast early votes or filled in absentee ballots in 2020 – including more than 500,000 in battleground states. And in some states such as Michigan where some 76,000 young people have already voted – compared to just 12,800 at the same point in 2016 – the number of young voters has already outstripped the margin of victory in the previous election.
The confluence of a global pandemic, economic uncertainty, widespread and ongoing protests of racial injustice, the recent completion of the decennial census, and an open U.S. Supreme Court seat have made the contest over who gets to lead our nation both inescapable and highly relevant to our daily lives. Emotions are high on both sides of the aisle. The political and social climate is, no doubt, influencing massive interest among young people, including those under the age of 18 who cannot yet vote.
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