One Month Prior
CASEY: It was important for me to vote in this election because I really wanted to exercise that right as an adult. I knew I was voting long before the election hype began. In October, I sent in my registration so that I would be able to vote. About two weeks after I sent it in, I got a voter registration card in the mail. I also got mail from a lot of different organizations (some affiliated with certain candidates) encouraging me to vote on Election Day.
GRACE: I knew I wanted to vote before I turned eighteen. My family frequently discusses politics at the dinner table, so It was a pretty important system to become involved with. I registered in September and received my voter registration card around the first week of September.
Weeks before the Election
CASEY: After I got my voter registration card, I got serious about getting information on the candidates. Although I watched some parts of the debates, I got most of my information through voters guides. I checked my facts on multiple sources to ensure that the information I was getting was unbiased and correct. Even though I thought I knew where I fell on the political ideology spectrum, I took several online quizzes to confirm that. The most informative one I used was isidewith.com.
GRACE: I was afraid of falling into the trap of media bias, so I went to the candidates websites to read their plans and observed their behavior and opinions during the debates. Once I read up on the websites, I then began to look at the major news outlets opinions to see if they generally believed the candidates supported the same ideas. I found it really confusing at times doing my research regarding which candidate I preferred because I was worried that a source of information may sway my opinion. A couple days before, I found isidewith.com and that was above all the most useful source. It really helped me to identify who I agreed with.
Election Day
CASEY: My mom and I went to vote together since it was my first time voting. I expected the line to be long, but it only took about 5 minutes for us to get through. The process was simpler than I thought and the poll workers were nice, especially since I was a first-time voter. After signing my name in the record book (to verify identity), they gave me a card that looked like a credit card. I put it into the machine and followed the directions. Once I cast my ballot, the card popped out and I was done. I’m really glad I voted. The 18-24 age group consistently shows a low voter turnout, which means that politicians don’t pay much attention to us. It’s nice to be one less person perpetuating that statistic. I strongly encourage anyone over 18 to vote!
GRACE: I woke up early and went into vote because I had work right after school. I waited about one hour in line but it went by extremely fast because I made conversation with those around me. I went to vote with my parents. The actual process of casting a ballot was extremely simple. I showed ID, signed my name on a card, and received another card to insert into the machine. The machine was a touch screen computer and was extremely simple to work! I really enjoyed my experience voting for the first time, and it was a lot less scary than I imagined! I am proud to say that I was one of the few in my age group to vote, and it feels extremely good that I was allowed to share my opinion. To any underclassmen who may be reading this, I highly encourage you to register when you get the chance!