The Dilemma of Young Voter Apathy

By Donald Kimball

American Government
Dr. Andrew Kauffmann
December 5, 2014

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I dont really care about politics, dont really pay much attention. Unfortunately, this is a
common sentiment among the youth of the 21st century, a trend which is carried out in the U.S.
Most impacting effects include creating uninformed voters or, most commonly, non-voters.
Ironically, this is often the result of the information age, as individuals have mass amounts of
data at their disposal and thus no compulsion to study it continually, as well as the entertainment
available now. The aim of this paper will be to highlight the disparity in voter turnout, especially
youth voters, and argue the cause as technology and the cultural affects it produces, and lastly
provide solutions to increase civic engagement.
Its no secret that voter turnout is at abysmal rates in the modern era. From 1828 1932,
voter turnout rates for presidential years, of the voting age population averaged at roughly 69%,
and since then from 1936 2012 down to 56%.1 Historically midterm rates fair even worse, and
the most recent midterm hit lowest turnout rates in 72 years.2 Of all age groups, the youth have
been constantly low in the modern era, and after the 1972 election dropping below the 50%
threshold and never achieving higher than that since.3 Most common responses for youth
abstinence from polling is due to the lack of faith in the government system, followed by the
general lack of interest spurred by nothing but pure apathy.4 Interestingly, the effects of the
media in sensationalizing national elections has caused higher general interest in national
elections, yet this feeling of disconnection from government is highly prominent. Similarly,
when youth are abstaining from voting in national elections, it mostly continues into not voting
in local elections, despite the necessarily direct impact these have on citizens. Unfortunately, this
fits into a category which Alexis de Tocqueville warns about, where a country lacks political

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energy and citizens retreat into complete individualism.5 What have we to blame for this trend?
While there are, in reality, a multitude of factors and no single reason can adequately be stated, it
is heavily influenced by the digital age in which we live. This is manifested in two ways: the
effects social and traditional media has on shaping a citizens views and the effects of technology
on the culture.
Ever since 1924, when Calvin Coolidge broadcast his State of the Union address on
public radio, citizens have had more and more access to political news and business. One of the
affects this has had, however, is the disillusionment of the government in the eyes of the public.
Practically every president has had his own scandals, but never before have they been so
accessible, as well as dramatized. This has over the course of years added to public distrust,
skepticism, and cynicism in regards to the government, and in turn effected popularity of
democracy and its effectiveness.6 As these scandals, dysfunction, and problems became
publicized the mainstream, the continuance from every administration gave each political camp
headache, and the supporting bases were disillusioned to some degree. Especially in the modern
media, sensationalizing scandals tends to gather higher views, and thus media bombards viewers
with negative images of government and presidential mishaps, which makes itself evident in the
cynicism of younger citizens. With studies linking the high rates of television in homes to lower
turnout, we see that not only do adults who own the televisions get caught in this trend, but it is
highly likely to expand to the children of those homes, who often are exposed to the news
channels their parents watch.7 Oftentimes this produces a specific type of discontent; when
neutral media outlets reveal administration scandals, it causes more than just a negative

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perception, but almost a hopeless one inciting apathy rather than action. This was evident with
the general disappointment in President Obama culminating before the 2012 election, his
reelection, and the low turnout rates.8 As the youth, which Obama had energized through talk of
hope and change (appealing to the already described cynicism), saw very little results from
the formerly inspiring candidate, they dropped in turnout rates by 7%.9 They were not the only
group frustrated by the president, and many saw the race being less about Mitt Romney vs.
Obama and Not Obama vs. Obama. Even so, the negative perception of Obama created
complacency with government, and though many were highly discontented, it showed less
through action against Obama and more through action against democracy; not voting. This type
of discontent is often appeased by simple actions, and social media has directed action of
discontent to go to posting content rather than show through voting. Social media users have
statistically been recorded as having higher levels of interest in protecting civil liberties, often in
a stance rejecting government intervention, but their posts through networks often work as a
catharsis rather than taking the issue to the voting polls.10 So while traditional media has fed
discontent to citizens, social media has provided an outlet through which discontent people who
do care often feel as though theyve contributed by posting their thoughts, joining an online
movement, or pushing some content in a way which was before satiated by voting. In this way,
technology on each side contributes into a nasty cycle where people become disheartened
because of hyped mishaps from the government, channel this discontent into apathy or social
media outcry, neglect voting because of the idea of insignificance & satiated appetite for action,
and thus no changes can be made to imperfect systems.

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The second way which technology has contributed to this trend is the cultural norms
which it has produced. In the information age, not only are we able to have access to
unfathomable amounts of data, but we can access it, collaborate about, and process it all
instantly. Traditional forms of engagement, research, and communication are being replaced by
the instant channels of internet, mobile phones, and flash media; psychological studies show that
youth are far more likely to be comfortable using modern communication methods such as
texting and online chatting than face to face conversation.11 It betrays the need for the newer
generation to get engaged in non-traditional means, as well as the lack of commitment to long
term investments. Not only have most political groups failed to capitalize on proper
technological fronts, but most youth arent interested in investing the time into researching
candidates or issues, thus feeling disconnected from the process, and hence no strong draw to
vote in polls. Necessarily, democratic systems take time to implement change, and this is very
antithetical to the nature of millennials; they want to see change, and they want it now. This was
part of the mass youth appeal of Obama in 2008, he spoke the language of stark, quick change.
When this failed to happen, they became less inspired and regressed back into an apathetic state.
Negativity of media alone didnt cause Obamas demise, but the specific fact that the change he
promised wasnt happening quickly enough for a generation used to lightning fast reactions
caused the minds of youth to turn skeptical. As a side effect of this quick access as well as wide
depth of access to information, youth are less inclined to keep to date and learn current
information, as they always have access. With no necessity to memorize or accumulate
knowledge manually, the drive to be well read drops significantly this coupled with the short

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term entertainment youth grow up on, and interest to be informed about politics drops. The
modern quantities of knowledge have stopped kids from reading, and this produces less well read
citizens.12 When these youth grow up and start becoming the voting population, significant levels
of decrease of voter turnout are seen.
By nature, technological advances will continue on: does this mean our democratic
system is doomed to fall, being utterly neglected by a base so incapacitated by apathy that the
minority that vote rule? Fortunately, there are a few solutions which can help to engage the
younger generation in voting, and perhaps better the political process as a whole as a result. The
first is expanding ideologies in the political field through third parties, varied candidates, etc. and
the second is by more adequately learning to convey political ideas through technology.
Obamas massive success with the youth vote in 2008 had a notable feature, one that has
been mentioned in this paper: he connected with his audience and spoke their language. The
cynicism and disinterest was washed away as he spoke in a new political light, he was a new
kind of politician, one that came to shake things up with the old, corrupt systems, and unite. This
was the dream of the millennials.13 After his term, it turned out he was truly no different than any
other politician, and the young voters went back to disinterest. Yet, the spark had happened, and
the American political system must embrace the core of what ignited the younger generation: the
new ideology. The two party system in American politics causes much of the same rhetoric to be
espoused year after year, and thanks to media portrayals, modern voters are tired of these two
basic parties. Most Americans choose to identify as independent over Republican or Democrat,
and seeing a new kind of candidate would be enough to inspire voters to reevaluate politics.14 In

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a similar fashion to Obama, this trend can be seen amongst younger members of the Republican
Party who tend to support the newly arisen brand of liberty conservative15, libertarian leaning
members such as Sen. Rand Paul, Rep. Justin Amash, and Gov. Nikki Haley.16 By allowing a
plurality of ideas into the political debate, younger voters who may have varied ideas will
actively get engaged, supporting candidates they like and believe will be able to bypass the
corruption and truly represent them. Regardless of the probability of actual change due to the
media, if the political scene can cause more voices to be heard, more people will feel
represented, support those candidates they like, and perhaps become a long term engaged citizen.
The last method which can help encourage younger voters is a better engagement on the
platforms of the 21st century. Many political activators, such as local parties, candidates, and
interest groups still appeal to the older generation through paper and traditional advertisements
and flyers, and these are ineffective in reaching younger voters. The Obama campaigns have
been fairly effective at using Facebook advertising and other social media outreach at mobilizing
their supporters. In 2008, Obama and McCains respective Facebook pages had over 2 million
and 600,000 likes respectively, and Obamas interaction rates with followers was much higher.17
If more political groups achieve this level of engagement on a technological level, an increase of
interest in politics will continue to rise.
Young voters are dropping and its partially thanks to the blessings of technology. The
level of discouragement promulgated by the media, apathy imbedded, and instant gratification
imbued have made for an altogether disinterested young electorate. Without reforms in use of
technology and appeal of broader candidates and political views, the youth will continue in their

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cynicism and disinterest, as theyre neither being presented with appealing options nor are they
being presented in the best manner. If both of these changes can be made, only then can
technology be properly utilized to see a vast array of ideas represented, and brought forward in
the best possible medium.

1 "Voter Turnout in Presidential Elections." Voter Turnout in Presidential Elections. Accessed December 03, 2014.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/turnout.php.
2 Alter, Charlotte. "Voter Turnout in Midterm Elections Hits 72-Year Low." Time. November 10, 14. Accessed
December 02, 2014. http://time.com/3576090/midterm-elections-turnout-world-war-two/.
3 "Youth Voting." CIRCLE RSS. Accessed December 02, 2014. http://www.civicyouth.org/quick-facts/youth-voting/.
4 Morris, Errol. "Wondering Why Young People Don't Vote? Better to Ask Why Any Do." The Huffington Post.
October 31, 2012. Accessed December 04, 2014. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/errolmorris/post_4059_b_2050735.html.
5 Tocqueville, Alexis De, Phillips Bradley, Henry Reeve, and Francis Bowen. "Introductory Chapter." In Democracy
in America, 16. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1945.
6 Moy, P., and D. A. Scheufele. "Media Effects on Political and Social Trust." Journalism & Mass Communication
Quarterly 77, no. 4 (2000): 744-59. doi:10.1177/107769900007700403.
7 Thelen, David P. Becoming Citizens in the Age of Television: How Americans Challenged the Media and Seized
Political Initiative during the Iran-Contra Debate. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
8 McDonald, Michael P. "2012 Turnout: Race, Ethnicity and the Youth Vote." The Huffington Post. May 08, 2013.
Accessed December 04, 2014. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-p-mcdonald/2012-turnout-raceethnict_b_3240179.html.
9 Ibid.
10 Swigger, Nathaniel. "The Online Citizen: Is Social Media Changing Citizens Beliefs About Democratic
Values?" Political Behavior 35, no. 3 (2013): 589-603. doi:10.1007/s11109-012-9208-y.
11 Mahatanankoon, Pruthikrai. "The Effects of Personality Traits and Optimum Stimulation Level on TextMessaging Activities and M-commerce Intention." International Journal of Electronic Commerce 12, no. 1 (2007):
7-30. doi:10.2753/JEC1086-4415120101.
12 Moyer, Jessica E. "Teens Today Dont Read Books Anymore: A Study of Differences in Interest and
Comprehension Based on Reading Modalities: Part 1, Introduction and Methodology." The Journal of Research on
Libraries and Young Adults, November 2, 2010.
13 Romano, Andrew. "HE'S ONE OF US NOW." Newsweek 151, no. 7 (February 18, 2008): 38-41. Vocational and
Career Collection, EBSCOhost (accessed December 5, 2014).
14 Jones, Jeffrey M. "Record-High 42% of Americans Identify as Independents." Record-High 42% of Americans
Identify as Independents. Accessed December 04, 2014. http://www.gallup.com/poll/166763/record-highamericans-identify-independents.aspx.
15 Pianin, Eric. "Rand Paul Woos Youth Vote for 2016 Presidential Bid." Yahoo Finance. March 30, 2014. Accessed
December 05, 2014. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/rand-paul-woos-youth-vote-100000354.html.
16 "Elected Officials." Republican Liberty Caucus. Accessed December 05, 2014. http://www.rlc.org/electedofficials.
17 Metzgar, Emily, and Albert Maruggi. "Social Media and the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election". Journal of New
Communications Research. Accessed December 4, 2014.

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Communication Quarterly 77, no. 4 (2000): 744-59. doi:10.1177/107769900007700403.

Kimball 10

Moyer, Jessica E. "Teens Today Dont Read Books Anymore: A Study of Differences in Interest and
Comprehension Based on Reading Modalities: Part 1, Introduction and Methodology." The
Journal of Research on Libraries and Young Adults, November 2, 2010.
Pianin, Eric. "Rand Paul Woos Youth Vote for 2016 Presidential Bid." Yahoo Finance. March 30,
2014. Accessed December 05, 2014. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/rand-paul-woos-youth-vote100000354.html.
Swigger, Nathaniel. "The Online Citizen: Is Social Media Changing Citizens Beliefs About
Democratic Values?" Political Behavior 35, no. 3 (2013): 589-603. doi:10.1007/s11109-0129208-y.
Thelen, David P. Becoming Citizens in the Age of Television: How Americans Challenged the Media
and Seized Political Initiative during the Iran-Contra Debate. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1996.
Tocqueville, Alexis De, Phillips Bradley, Henry Reeve, and Francis Bowen. "Introductory Chapter."
In Democracy in America, 16. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1945.
"Voter Turnout in Presidential Elections." Voter Turnout in Presidential Elections. Accessed December
03, 2014. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/turnout.php.
"Youth Voting." CIRCLE RSS. Accessed December 02, 2014. http://www.civicyouth.org/quickfacts/youth-voting/.