CIRCLE just released a new report that analyzes the variety of web sites on the ‘net focused on youth and politics and getting young people to vote. I recommend reading the executive summary, which is a few pages. The bottom line is this: elected officials and candidates still have a long way to go to provide tools and resources to engage youth in the electoral process at a comparable level to the way other groups are targeted (e.g. senior citizens). This problem stems from the bigger issue that people 18-25 are for the most part not voting. And it’s proven that when you don’t vote when you’re young, you usually don’t vote when you’re old. While many people got fired up after Dean’s internet-emphasized campaign, the sad statistics still stand that the internet resources for young people to “plug in” to current affairs and participate in the democratic process are weak.
Here in Australia we have compulsory voting and you are fined if you don’t vote in an election. Rather than it being an imposition or an infringements of their rights I believe most Australians regard compulsory voting as a strength of the Australian political system. Especially when we see reports of low voter turnout in other countries. I can’t imagine living in a country where only half the population care about who runs the country.
This is going to sound harsh, but I really find it hard to pity groups of people (ie youth) in our country that don’t vote. It was certainly the democratic party’s defense for not wining this election “not everybody voted” My response: if middle America republicans can find an hour in their day every fours years to cast a ballot, and the main constituents of the democratic party cant say the same, then the soccer moms in-between New York and California deserve to pick our president.