Voting’s importance is not understood

Andrew Stiffler

Last week, Californian’s were given the chance to vote on seven different propositions in Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s special election. Unfortunately, like most elections statewide or nationwide, voter turnout leaves us to question why we aren’t fulfilling our civic duty to vote.

Statewide voter turnout in last week’s election was 42.6 percent of all eligible voters. When voter turnout is so low, it makes me wonder how well the voting population is being represented.

But not all is lost, as a state we have made improvements. The last special election that was also strictly a vote on propositions was in 1993, in that year only 27.73 percent of eligible voters voted. While 42.6 percent is a whole lot better than the dismal 27.73, our state, and nation has a long way to go. However, voters between the ages of 18-30 are voting in even lower numbers. In the 2004 presidential election, less than 25 percent of voters between the ages of 18-30 voted.

Are we just not motivated? Do we not care about the issues? Why is our turnout drastically lower than any other age group?

To answer these questions, I surveyed 70 students on campus in my age group. Of the 70 students I surveyed, only 47 were registered and of those 47, only 21 actually voted in this recent state’s election.

My goal was to try to understand why so many students didn’t vote. “I am registered in my home town two hours away and had no time to get down there and vote before school and work,” pre-nursing freshman Joanna Hedden said.

Hedden’s reasons reflected the general reply I received. Most students just didn’t have the time, or didn’t make the time to vote. Many others didn’t care about the issues, or said they didn’t know enough about the propositions to make an informed decision.

I guess if the next election regards cell phone bills or, an increase in iPod download taxes, we might have seen a better turnout. Students need to make the effort to educate and to find the time to vote themselves.

Hedden added that some students take voting more seriously than others, “some ‘vote or die’ while others such as me, if you don’t have time, you don’t vote.” I wonder how many young people died at the hands of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs last year after his efforts were met with a meager 25 percent.

In the end, I can only hope that my generation will understand the importance of voting. The latest episode of Laguna Beach can wait, or be “Tivoed.” This last state election shaped the lives of all Californians. If we want to be taken seriously, we have to make our voices heard.

Contact Andrew Stiffler at [email protected]