November 6, 2018
By Samiha Kazi and Shashwati Sanjay
The midterms are over, but Lexington High School students should continue to pre-register to vote.
All people aspire to live in a world in which they can make their own decisions. One of the most important decisions is choosing political leadership, a decision American citizens are lucky to be in a position to make. Registering to vote is a necessary step for citizens to take in order to make political decisions. Unfortunately, many Americans do not exercise their right to vote, often because they don’t register.
“I think that pre-registering to vote is an action that all adolescents should take. It prepares us to use our voice once we finally become of age, and reminds us that we can still make a difference,” Angela Lai, a junior, said.
Some people think registering is just inconvenient. In fact, data shows that there has been a decrease in the number of people aged 18 to 34 who voted since the last time the census was taken in 2012. Meanwhile, the number of voters aged 45 to 64 and older has increased.
“I know that a lot of kids our age haven’t pre-registered to vote yet,”Jason Dai, a junior, said. “And I think it’s because they don’t feel like it is necessary since we technically are not allowed to vote until later. But I think pre-registering is important because it shows that young people are ready to leave an impact in the future.”
When people don’t pre-register to vote because they are too young, they often never register. And registration is a prerequisite to boosting voting percentages for young people. “Get out the vote” movements only work with eligible voters.
Yes, the midterms are over. But we shouldn’t wait until 2020 to remind ourselves that pre-registration is agency-affirming and important. Regardless of political ideology and age, we should all be proud to exercise this civic duty.
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