Are you eligible to vote?
What Issues Are Most Important for You Leading Up to the Midterm Elections?
Inflation, abortion, crime, climate change, immigration, jobs, college loans or something else? What’s on your mind?
Nov. 2, 2022, 5:00 a.m. ET
The United States midterm elections are coming up on Nov. 8. In this year’s midterms, Americans will vote on members of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Many states and local governments will also hold their own elections. There is a lot at stake.
Are you eligible to vote? If yes, will you be voting? If not, would you vote if you could? Either way, leading up to the midterm elections, what are the most important issues for you?
In “What’s on the Minds of 12 Young Voters,” Maggie Astor writes about a dozen Americans under 30, all living in swing states, who have a range of political priorities:
Whether they are marching against gun violence, advocating stronger action against climate change or pushing for or against abortion rights, young Americans of all political stripes have been engaged in some of the prominent social movements of the 21st century.
Electorally, however, they have often struggled to make their voices heard, despite turning out in increasing numbers in 2018 and 2020.
A New York Times/Siena College poll found that likely voters younger than 30 planned to support a Democrat for Congress by a 12-point margin in next month’s elections, compared with a narrow advantage for Republicans among likely voters at large. But, compared with older generations, they were less likely to say they would vote at all.
Twelve voters in their 20s, living in states with competitive Senate or governor’s races, spoke with photographers for The New York Times about the issues they considered most important. Though President Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan had been in the news, none said it was a top issue. Instead, they discussed their views on abortion, climate, the economy and immigration — or a search for, as one 24-year-old Wisconsin woman put it, “what’s best for the collective versus the singular.”
Jayda Priester, 25, who lives in Atlanta said:
“The most important issue for me is defunding the police. I am hugely for defunding the police and putting other resources available for crisis management, de-escalation.”
Chris Ahmann, 18, of Madison, Wis., a first-year mechanical engineering student at the University of Wisconsin and a first-generation Filipino American, said:
“Immigration is really close to me. I’m one of the only people in my family who is in the U.S. right now. I was born here, but they want to come here to the U.S. I’d like to see it easier for people.”
Emily McDermott, 27, of Lansdowne, Pa., said one of the issues she is voting on is abortion:
“Life begins in the womb, and I think that that is an inalienable right. And I don’t think it’s up to us to decide who lives and dies.”
Students, read the entire article, then tell us: The young people surveyed in the article brought up a range of issues they care deeply about, such as defunding the police, lowering fuel prices, ensuring health care equity and tackling immigration reform. What are the issues you care about most right now? Why?
Ms. Astor writes that, compared with older generations, young Americans were less likely to say they would vote at all in the midterm elections. Does that finding surprise you? Why do young people generally vote less consistently than older people? How do you think we can get more young people to vote? Have you been following the midterm elections? Are there candidates, or political parties, you want to win? Which ones, and why? Inflation, abortion, crime, climate change, immigration, jobs, college loans or something else? What’s currently on your mind? The Internet is an amazing tool. Why, you're using it right now! It is a series of tubes that connects information in a "web" like manner. People, corporations, governments all use it to send hundreds of trillions of dollars to each other nearly instantly across vast distances. You might even get your paycheck automatically deposited into your bank account thanks to the Internet! I agree that when society collapses we may need to revert back to paper and pencil voter registration (among other adjustments), but for the time being, this idea seems like it could work well!
Inflation, abortion, crime, climate change, immigration, jobs, college loans or something else? What’s on your mind?
Nov. 2, 2022, 5:00 a.m. ET
The United States midterm elections are coming up on Nov. 8. In this year’s midterms, Americans will vote on members of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Many states and local governments will also hold their own elections. There is a lot at stake.
Are you eligible to vote? If yes, will you be voting? If not, would you vote if you could? Either way, leading up to the midterm elections, what are the most important issues for you?
In “What’s on the Minds of 12 Young Voters,” Maggie Astor writes about a dozen Americans under 30, all living in swing states, who have a range of political priorities:
Whether they are marching against gun violence, advocating stronger action against climate change or pushing for or against abortion rights, young Americans of all political stripes have been engaged in some of the prominent social movements of the 21st century.
Electorally, however, they have often struggled to make their voices heard, despite turning out in increasing numbers in 2018 and 2020.
A New York Times/Siena College poll found that likely voters younger than 30 planned to support a Democrat for Congress by a 12-point margin in next month’s elections, compared with a narrow advantage for Republicans among likely voters at large. But, compared with older generations, they were less likely to say they would vote at all.
Twelve voters in their 20s, living in states with competitive Senate or governor’s races, spoke with photographers for The New York Times about the issues they considered most important. Though President Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan had been in the news, none said it was a top issue. Instead, they discussed their views on abortion, climate, the economy and immigration — or a search for, as one 24-year-old Wisconsin woman put it, “what’s best for the collective versus the singular.”
Jayda Priester, 25, who lives in Atlanta said:
“The most important issue for me is defunding the police. I am hugely for defunding the police and putting other resources available for crisis management, de-escalation.”
Chris Ahmann, 18, of Madison, Wis., a first-year mechanical engineering student at the University of Wisconsin and a first-generation Filipino American, said:
“Immigration is really close to me. I’m one of the only people in my family who is in the U.S. right now. I was born here, but they want to come here to the U.S. I’d like to see it easier for people.”
Emily McDermott, 27, of Lansdowne, Pa., said one of the issues she is voting on is abortion:
“Life begins in the womb, and I think that that is an inalienable right. And I don’t think it’s up to us to decide who lives and dies.”
Students, read the entire article, then tell us: The young people surveyed in the article brought up a range of issues they care deeply about, such as defunding the police, lowering fuel prices, ensuring health care equity and tackling immigration reform. What are the issues you care about most right now? Why?
Ms. Astor writes that, compared with older generations, young Americans were less likely to say they would vote at all in the midterm elections. Does that finding surprise you? Why do young people generally vote less consistently than older people? How do you think we can get more young people to vote? Have you been following the midterm elections? Are there candidates, or political parties, you want to win? Which ones, and why? Inflation, abortion, crime, climate change, immigration, jobs, college loans or something else? What’s currently on your mind? The Internet is an amazing tool. Why, you're using it right now! It is a series of tubes that connects information in a "web" like manner. People, corporations, governments all use it to send hundreds of trillions of dollars to each other nearly instantly across vast distances. You might even get your paycheck automatically deposited into your bank account thanks to the Internet! I agree that when society collapses we may need to revert back to paper and pencil voter registration (among other adjustments), but for the time being, this idea seems like it could work well!
