With the 2024 general election being a year away, DGS students are preparing for the race by registering to vote. Registering online or in-person, students are ready to make their voices heard throughout their communities. But while some are eagerly preparing to vote, a significant group of students will not vote in next year’s general election.

Younger voters are notorious for being an unlikely voting group. Social studies teacher Laura Rodey spoke about some of the challenges that face young voters.

“Some of the issues that always come up are one, that they don’t know how. They just feel intimidated by the whole process… I think another piece is ‘eh, why does it matter,’ so I think there is some apathy there,” Rodey said.

Additionally, some students may be turned away from recent politics. Elections have created a divisive mood across the nation, and many younger voters are being turned away from the rougher sides of politics. Before the 2020 presidential election, 68% of Americans reported that the election was a source of stress for them.

Rodey, who sees this in her classroom, says that this has led many young voters to disengage from political discussions and processes.

“In my 14 years of teaching, I feel like students are really turned off by politics right now. I think some young people [say], ‘I hate it. Everyone just yells at each other. Everyone hates each other. Nothing gets done,’ and they’re really just turned off by it,” Rodey said.

Additionally, Rodey spoke to the perceptions of young students. She emphasized that many students believe that their lives are not impacted regularly by government actions. Backing this up, a global survey of ten thousand young people found that 83% of young people said that governments were not protecting their futures.

Rodey believes this stems not from an apathy towards the issues of the day, but rather a view that voting has no consequences.

“I think for a lot of students they are 18 years old and… in their day-to-day [life] they don’t perceive it as being impacted by the [government]… It’s not that young people don’t care about issues, that’s never the issue. It’s just thinking that it will make a difference,” Rodey said.

One solution Rodey pointed towards was a larger cultural movement with an emphasis on teaching children. She pointed out that many elementary schools do not value social studies curriculum, favoring subjects like math and English.

“Social studies has really fallen by the wayside starting from elementary [and] middle school. It really became ‘the other’… If we really want young people to engage with society and feel like their voices are powerful, [there] has to be a cultural shift, and you have to start when kids are young,” Rodey said.

This trend has been seen all across the nation. In the 2022 midterm elections, the average turnout of young people ages 18-29 was at 27%, a four point drop from the 2018 midterm elections. Overall, students across the nation are turning away from voting.

This has prompted organizations to begin campaigning for young voters to register to vote at school. On Sept. 14, 2023, the League of Women’s voters aided DGS students in the registration process.

One student, senior Scott Conley, registered to vote during his fifth period lunch. Conley noted that he felt it was important for all students to use their voice and said he was very excited to vote next year.

“I think it’s a very important duty we have as American citizens to take part in our governmental system, and I’m very excited to take part in that once I’m old enough,” Conley said.

Moreover, Conley spoke about his experience in working at a polling location during the 2022 midterms. With the average age of a poll worker in the United States being 61 years old, Conley likely was one of the only, if not the only, poll worker below the age of 18.

He explained the importance of seeing his community coming in and added that it was a valuable experience for him to see democracy working up close.

“I feel as though it should be a community. Because at the end of the day, no matter what you believe, everyone wants their voice to be heard,” Conley said.