by Serena H.
Voting has become a very big deal in the last few years, especially with the new presidency. According to Time Magazine, voting has increased across the board after hitting an all time low during the Obama administration., with the highest changes being seen in the 18 to 29-year-olds. Since Trump began running for office, these numbers have been picking up and steadily increasing with each election, with the rate for youth turnout predicted to double! “The highest rate of youth voter turnout in past midterm elections was 21% in both 1986 and 1994... [Harvard’s poll] had predicted 49% of 18 to 29-year-olds would be voting.” As for this election, the midterm is important to the alignment of Congress.
When it comes to the importance of this election in particular, the New York Times wrote an article highlighting what significant about this election. There seems to be a toss-up for 48 of the 435 seats being voted on this midterm. If only half of those seats turn blue, the Democrats have majority in the House. That flip is not uncommon but very critical for the Democrats. As they go into more party campaigning and seats more likely to sway, it is an interesting read. As for the initial tidbit of information, that is huge! Republicans hold the majority across the board of government branches. Since Trump's election turning the executive branch Republican, the judicial branch has a Republican majority with Trump’s appointment of Kavannaugh to the US Supreme Court and Congress has stayed Republican as well. This election could be a turning point for Democrats. Turn out for parties opposite the Presidential party tend to have higher than normal turnout rates during the primary, but Republican overall have a higher turn out. That looks to change with the Democratic party having one of its highest turnouts ever. This turnout could highly affect the possible seat gain for the Democrats which will in turn affect legislation as a whole.
Now it may be confusing, and voting is not required, but it is strongly recommended, especially in mid terms. I am not here to tell you that you have to vote or pressure you to vote one way or the other. Just vote. Educate yourself before voting by researching your candidates’ platforms, because it only take 10 minutes and it can be very beneficial. Voting is a right in America and we need to take our opportunity where we can get it when it comes to being represented in our government. Midterms are all too often passed over by voters due to voters believing they don't matter because senator or representative elections aren't as important as the presidential vote. Members of Congress represent you, as a state, county, etc. on a daily basis. It is their duty to listen to you and follow their people when writing legislation, voting on it, etc. They have to hear you, whether they listened is to be determined, and later judged by their voters in the next possible election when they can be elected or not.
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