SERVING SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI SINCE 1927 • WWW.STUDENTPRINTZ.COM • OCTOBER 30, 2019 | VOLUME 105 | ISSUE 09
NEWS OCTOBER 30, 2019 MEET THE STAFF
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Universities’ voter turnout increases
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CALEB MCCLUSKEY NEWS EDITOR ut of an estimated 48,498 voters registered in Forrest County, 16,474 made it to the polls according to data provided by election commissioner of district one Gentry Mordica. However, many people believe this number is not indicative of the importance of voting and voter turnout. The executive director of Mississippi Votes, a nonprofit organization that seeks to boost civil engagement, Arekia Bennett said she is pleased to see an increase of voting across campuses in Mississippi. “Nationally, millennials outperformed baby boomers during the midterm election last year, and in Mississippi, we had a really historical turnout among that electorate,” Bennett said. “Part of that is because we engaged young people directly.” Bennett said in universities like Jackson State, the organization saw a dramatic increase as almost 351% in voter turnout between 2014 to 2018. Forrest County Election Commissioner Sue Polk said it is important for college students to go out and vote. However, she said students should vote in their home counties instead of their college counties unless they plan to stay in Hattiesburg after graduation. “They have those drives at USM—and all colleges—to get the students to vote because they can’t go back, but they can if they vote absentee,” Polk said. “They hold the drives, and after they register, maybe three-fourths of them don’t even vote.” Polk said she expects a good voter turnout for the Nov. 5 election because of the competitive governor’s race and local sheriff’s race. Polk said some people do not find local elections as important. “This election is never as large as the presidential election,” Polk said. “In my 22 years [as an election commissioner], I’ve never understood it. Your state and your local officials can do more for you as an individual in the state of Mississippi as your president can.” In the 2018 midterm election, out of the
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45,784 registered voters of Forrest County, 23,176, just over 50% of voters, participated in the election. When asked how this number stacks up to neighboring counties, Polk said that she has never compared Forrest County to other counties like Madison, Hinds or Harrison because the bigger cities of Jackson and Biloxi are there. “I’ve never compared Hattiesburg to—we’ll say–cities like Jackson, Greenwood, Greenville or Tupelo,” Polk said. “The coast is much larger than us, and Jackson is much larger than us, so I’ve never compared our city to another.” According to Bennett, students need to get involved with local politics specifically because that is where people’s voices are better heard. “It is not just about performing on Election Day. We know that it is about cultivating an environment where folks are talking about these
policies that shape our lives,” Bennett said. “Two or three votes can change one election. I believe that more people are engaged because they believe wholeheartedly that their voices matter.” Southern Miss alumnus and millennial fellow for MS Votes Jack Hoda, who is a first-year master’s of public administration student at the University of North Carolina, agreed with Bennett that local politics are important, and also said millennials are becoming more interested in issues that affect them, which has led to a rise in voter turnout for the age block. “There are definitely movements happening in our generation that we haven’t seen in a long time,” Hoda said. “People are really passionate about the issues that are affecting them. People are really passionate about the current political landscape.”
The views represented in The Student Printz’s columns and editorials do not represent those of the faculty, staff or administration of The University of Southern Mississippi. We welcome letters to the editor representing similar and contrasting opinions. To be eligible for publication, all submission must include name, class distinction, major, phone number and email address. Submissions should be emailed to printzeditors@ gmail.com by 5 p.m. on the Friday before publication. Please limit them to 500 words or less. The Student Printz reserves the right to refuse publication or edit any material on the basis of clarity, space or journalistic ethics.
Opinions expressed in The Student Printz are those of the writer and not necessarily those of The Student Printz, its publication manager, USM, the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning or the USM Board of Student Publications.
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NEWS OCTOBER 30, 2019 ditor’s Note: Nonprofit news organization Mississippi Today asked the candidates running for statewide office their stances on five issues. Here are the answers from candidates running for governor. To read more coverage on these candidates and what other candidates running for statewide offices said, visit Mississippi Today’s #MSELEX Voter Guide on MississippiToday.org/ voter-guide-2019/.
Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves
Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood
Independent David Singletary
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The Issues: Governor’s Race Abortion
Healthcare
Criminal Justice
“It should not matter what zip code you live in or how rich your parents are, every child deserves an equal opportunity for success. That’s why I pushed for letter grades for our schools, public charter schools, and parental choice in education to provide more options for kids that have been trapped in failing school districts. It’s why I supported performance pay for teachers in schools that improve and led the charge on improving teacher pay by at least $8,000 since I was elected. And it’s why I just announced my plan to increase teacher pay to the southeastern average.”
“Abortion is the greatest evil of our time, and it’s not good enough to say that it is not our job to protect those babies. We need to be proactive. That’s why I helped pass Mississippi’s Heartbeat Bill to protect the innocent unborn from abortion as soon as a heartbeat is detected. I am 100% pro-life, and I believe it is our responsibility to defend the innocent unborn. I am honored to have received endorsements from Mississippi Right to Life and National Right to Life. As Governor, I’ll continue to stand up for the unborn and protect them.”
“I remain committed to improving access to quality healthcare so every Mississippian has a hospital they can depend on, in a drive they can make. Recently at an event with the Mississippi State Medical Association where they endorsed my run for Governor, I announced my healthcare plan to increase the number of residencies in rural areas, provide more scholarships for those who commit to practicing medicine in Mississippi, utilize telemedicine more effectively, and encourage private-sector participation in the financing of our healthcare structure. As Governor, I will continue fighting to expand access to quality healthcare for everyone across our state.”
“Prisons were not meant to be revolving doors. People reoffend when they are not equipped with the skills or provided the opportunities to succeed. As Lieutenant Governor, I have pushed for criminal justice reform to make it less likely that a person leaving prison will commit another crime and can reenter society as a contributing member who can provide for their family. I am committed to ensuring that all correctional facilities meet federal and state standards and help rehabilitate people to become productive members who can take care of their families and contribute to their communities.”
“Tate Reeves has underfunded our public schools for too long and has shown disrespect toward our hardworking public school teachers. Every community in Mississippi hurts when we don’t have a quality public school system. That needs to change. As a product of a Mississippi public school myself and a father of three of the same, I strongly support public schools, public school teachers, and public school students. We must implement statewide pre-k, fully fund MAEP, raise the teacher salary to at least the Southeastern average, and provide workforce training and tuition assistance to community college students.”
“I’m firmly pro-life.”
“We must accept the billion dollars that the federal government offers us every year to keep our rural hospitals open and provide healthcare to over 300,000 working Mississippians.”
“We can help reduce incarceration and state costs by instituting some commonsense criminal justice reforms, such as changes to sentencing lengths for non-violent offenders, which disproportionately affects the black male population. Additionally, we should allow non-violent formerly incarcerated individuals to have the right to vote after they serve their debt to society.”
“Have to educate your way out of poverty. Educate the young people keep them in state.”
“Let the women decide or no abortions after 18 weeks.”
“Need affordable healthcare for all.”
“Legalize cannabis and let the non-violent offenders out of jail.”
Public Education
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Republican teachers commit to voting for Hood ALYSSA BASS PRINTZ EXECUTIVE EDITOR hen Joseph Puckett was a substitute teacher at Vicksburg High School, he was shocked by what he saw. The product of a private school education, the sophomore teaching and coaching major at Copiah-Lincoln Community College said he saw students who lacked a stable connection with their teachers in an outdated environment. His experience at the D-rated school caused him to evaluate the politicians in office and resign from a leadership position in his College Republicans group. “I went to the Neshoba County Fair, saw Jim Hood speak, and I said I can’t be a part of this group no more,” Puckett said. “They’re going to hold me back. If I cannot stand up for what I believe is right without getting pushed down and my feet stepped on, then this group is not for me.” Puckett is one of nearly 1,000 members in the Teachers for Hood Facebook group, which has united Democrat and Republican teachers who have committed to voting for Attorney General Jim Hood for governor Nov. 5. Some have dubbed the general election as the public education election. Republican teachers specifically, many for the first time, have announced their commitment to voting against their party to support Hood, who they believe will fight for higher salaries, invest in public schools and combat the teacher shortage. “It’s not a Democrat-Republican issue. It’s an outsider person establishment issue, and that’s the problem in our state government,” Puckett said. “Jim Hood really is on a mission to make Mississippi great again.” Republican teacher in the Jackson Public School District Vicky Hankins, who has been a teacher for 27 years, said she created the Facebook group to give frustrated teachers a voice. She also said people refusing to vote outside their party are shortsighted. “[It] is the very reason we have many of the problems in education that we have. We already know Tate Reeves’ voting record as far as public education and public school teachers,” Hankins said. “To me, this should be enough to make any Republican teacher in Mississippi step outside their party and vote for the best interest of public education and their own livelihood.” Hankins said legislators have implied that teachers are unimportant by not paying teachers the southeastern average
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Education studies professor Thomas O’Brien , Ph.D., said teachers are voting with saleries in mind.
salary, which is about $50,000. Mississippi ranks last for the average public school teacher salary. Currently, teachers with a bachelor’s degree earn a base salary of $35,890 for their first two years while teachers with a doctorate degree earn a salary of $40,608, according to the Mississippi Department of Education. In 2017-2018, the average salary was $44,926. Both Hood and Reeves have announced plans to increase teacher pay to the Southeastern average if elected. Education studies professor and teacher for 37 years Thomas O’Brien, Ph.D., said the candidates have similar education plans on paper. The differences are the levels of trust with educators and the language they use to describe education. “Reeves has gotten very interested recently in articulating a platform on public education, and I’ve noticed even though he’s, you know, not funded it or not been in favor of funding it in the past, he’s got a plan now to increase teacher pay,” O’Brien said.
“Maybe some can trust that Tate Reeves will come through, but my gut is that this is kind of a last minute maneuver to peel off some of those teachers and secure a vote.” In 2017, the state spent $8,771 per student, according to the Census. The national average is $12,201. O’Brien said Mississippi is indicative of a national problem of treating teachers like nonprofessionals. “Jim Hood, for example, will say we want to invest in public schools,” O’Brien said. “We’ve never really fully funded schools. We’ve never supported teachers, we’ve never, so let’s fund them as best we can. Tate Reeves will probably argue that the system isn’t working. So let’s try something else, like charter schools or voucher schools. “I’m more on the invest in the public side.” Southern Miss alumna and member of the Teachers for Hood Facebook group Ashley Dixon is not registered as a Republican or Democrat, but she knew she was voting for Hood when she read his stance on education.
Dixon currently teaches third grade special education in the Senatobia Municipal School District. In seven years, she has worked in several school districts. When she taught for Yazoo City Municipal School District, she said she was faced with the struggles children in underfunded school districts deal with daily: scarce basic necessities like toilet paper and teachers with no certification and little educational background. “Every day was a battle to love and educate some of the greatest kids I’ve ever known, but because of legislative policies and where they happen to live, they have no fighting chance,” Dixon said. Legislators have been brainstorming ways to fix the teacher shortage for years. Stories from teachers like Dixon’s are common. A 2017 study published in the Mississippi Economic Review found that the teacher shortage tends to disproportionately affect school districts with predominantly black students in the YazooMississippi Delta region. According to Hood’s website, Hood plans to combat the teacher shortage through adjusting licensing requirements and reevaluating the Praxis among other ideas. According to Reeves’ website, Reeves plans to offer a $10,000 bonus for new teachers who teach science, technology, engineering or math in critical shortage areas like the Delta. Dixon wonders if Hood is able to relate to all voters. “In my opinion he’s more relatable to the everyday Mississippian, but I also feel like he’s missing out on the established Mississippian who relates to Reeves’s status,” Dixon said. Reeves has been endorsed by Gov. Phil Bryant, Brett Favre and most recently, President Donald Trump. O’Brien said Trump’s endorsement might not be a factor for socially conservatice teachers. “My guess is that they’re going to make a distinction between state politics and national politics and then look at their own pocketbooks and figure out that these bread and butter issues deserve a real scrutiny of who to vote for,” O’Brien said. In the latest poll by WLBT and Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy, Inc., Reeves has a slight lead over Hood with 46% of likely voters saying they’re likely to support him compared to Hood’s 43%. Trump will campaign for Reeves at a rally in Tupelo Friday. Puckett plans to attend the rally and wear his Hood hat. “I’m going to stand out there and say, ‘I support Trump, but it’s time for a change in Mississippi. I want to drain the swamp here.” If elected, Hood would be Mississippi’s first Democratic governor since 2003. Reeves’ campaign did not respond to request for comment.
Students participate in political campaigns MORGAN USRY PRINTZ REPORTER ost college students are politically active in some way, whether it’s joining a campus organization, being informed or voting. But some students take their involvement a step further and join political campaigns to promote their ideas and gain experience. Allie Estorge, sophomore political science major, is a campaign intern for Secretery of State Delbert Hosemann’s campaign for reelection and Missy McGee’s reelection campaign for state house representative in district 102. She also serves as an intern for Congressman Steven Palazzo. For Estorge, the most challenging part about campaigning is stepping out of your comfort zone. “If you’re not comfortable being a little pushy and getting people to the polls and making people understand why it’s important to vote, then that can a little difficult. It was for me at first. But after you get past that fear, you get better at it,” Estorge said. Estorge said she thinks it’s important for students to be informed about politics and to even get involved with campaigns if that’s something they’re interested in. “It’s one of those things that can be intimidating at first, but it’s such a rewarding experience to see everything at work and see people who love to do what they do,” Estorge said. “It’s very rewarding at the end of the day, win or lose, because you know that you are working towards a cause to better the state that you live in.” Jacob Nelson, a senior criminal justice major, first started working in politics earlier this year when he began working on Bill Waller’s campaign for governor as its Hattiesburg coordinator. After Waller lost the nomination, he became the Hattiesburg coordinator for Jay Hughes’ campaign for lieutenant governor in August. Nelson said Hughes’ focus on education is what made him want to work for the campaign.
Courtesy of Delbert Hoseman Facebok Page
“My mom’s a teacher, and I think they need better and students need better,” Nelson said. “And as a guy who donates his entire house rep. salary to the Oxford Public School District, where he represents, he’s a good guy.” Nelson said working for both campaigns has been a great experience for him. Through them, he’s gained valuable contacts and experience. “I gave a speech for Waller on his campaign in front of 450 people at a fair,” Nelson said. “That’s not something that a lot of people can say that they’ve done anytime in their college career, and to say that I did it and loved doing it is something that you can only get on a campaign really.”
Allie Estorge campaings with Secretery of State Delbert Hosemann Nelson said while he has enjoyed his work campaigning, it is also often a stressful position, especially as a student. “A lot of my nights I’m until like 3 a.m. doing homework, but it’s part of the job and I enjoy it,” Nelson said. Although Nelson said the job is stressful, high stress and working on a time limit is also what he enjoys most about working on campaigns. Another student working on a local campaign is Miranda Williams, a social work graduate student. Williams serves as the executive assistant for former mayor of Hattiesburg, Johnny DuPree, for his campaign for secretary of state.
During her time as an undergraduate at Southern Miss, Williams took a policy course taught by DuPree that sparked her interest to be involved in politics. “Him being the former mayor, we got a unique perspective,” Williams said. “He taught us how our role as social workers is so pivotal to ensuring our clients are heard and because of him and that class, I went to Connecticut for a social work campaign school to learn about other social workers on campaigns and what they do.” Aside from her work on the DuPree campaign, Williams worked on Jeramey Anderson’s campaign for congress and is also the secretary of the Young Democrats of Mississippi. While Williams has enjoyed working on the campaign and wants to continue her involvement with campaigns after this one ends, she said that it is often difficult to find a good balance between life, school and campaign work. “It is hard to explain to family and friends that I am never truly off the clock and it is not uncommon to receive emails or phone calls super early or super late,” Williams said. “However, I have found that the ‘do not disturb’ function on my phone is my friend and helps me stay focused and be efficient. Also, I have been lucky enough to work for candidates who remind me that school, family and my mental health come first.” Logan Miller, a freshman entrepreneurship major, is involved with Tate Reeves campaign for governor and mainly contributes by calling voters and talking to voters in the community about Reeves. Miller said he has always liked politics and thought being involved in campaigning would be good experience and an opportunity to see how it works. “I’ve admired what Tate Reeves has done for the state of Mississippi and I wanted to contribute more to politics than just voting,” Miller said. Miller said the best and most challenging part about being his involvement has been engaging with and having real conversations with people who don’t support Reeves. “If I’ve been unable to switch their vote, I’ve been able to find common ground. I think that’s the key to politics, especially today,” Miller said.
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Campus groups encourage political involvement MOLLY SCHRAEDER PRINTZ REPORTER
also don’t know much about voting or politics in general, so we want to make it seem fun—not boring like politics can be sometimes.”
s the November elections draw near and Mississippi prepares for what the National Review calls a “surprisingly competitive” race for governor, student groups at Southern Miss, such as Converge, College Democrats and College Republicans, have put time and effort into campaigning for their candidates.
On the other side of the governor race is Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, who is supported by the College Republicans. Senior psychology major Roderick Jones serves as the vice president of College Republicans, and he said the organization has been working hard to endorse Tate Reeves on campus. Members of the College Republicans have been tabling for their club and for Reeves in order to increase awareness and involvement from students. Jones said the organization met with a member of Reeves’ campaign team on Friday to see what they can do to help on election day.
While some of these groups endorse and campaign for candidates, the leaders of each organization hope that students will become politically active and make informed decisions above all. According to the New York Times Article “Why Does No One Vote in Local Elections?”, only 27% of eligible voters voted in municipal elections last year, leading to results that are often unrepresentative of citizen feelings. Senior political science major Lauren-Hunter Gaudet co-founded Converge, a non-partisan organization in its third semester on campus. As a non-partisan group, Converge allows students with different political views to discuss issues and potentially expand their minds with impactful conversation. Gaudet said students are very affected by this governor race, and she hopes Converge allows students to get informed and realize their political power. “When younger people become educated on issues, when they become passionate on issues, when they have an opinion on is-
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Vice President of the College Republicans Roderick Jones said Lt. Gov. Tate reevs will be elected governor.
sues, it’s so important and it really will allow effective change to happen,” Gaudet said. Senior communications major Brandon Rue is president of College Democrats and is also running for House District 102. Like Gaudet, Rue said he hopes students become more politically involved. While the organization has worked to endorse Attorney General Jim Hood for governor, they are also encouraging informed voting and general participation. “The goal is to get people civically engaged, to get people involved in the process because we have a lot of voter apathy and people who are simply not interested,” Rue
said. “At the end of the day, regardless of who wins or who loses, we want students to understand that they play a major role in any election.” On election day, the College Democrats plan to campaign at voting stations, make phone calls and do whatever they can to help Hood in his push for governor. Rue said that the College Democrats will be leading a walk to the polls to help voter turn out. “The idea behind it is that college students don’t really like doing things themselves. So, we want to make it a party atmosphere,” Rue said. “Some college students
With the endorsement of President Trump and Mississippi’s conservative history, Jones said he believes Reeves will emerge victorious in the election. “I feel like a lot of people right now, we’re complaining about things that are happening, but we’re not getting out and voting,” Jones said. Although Jones hopes that students show up for Reeves, he, like Rue, said that political involvement is a top priority. “We have a voice, and we can actually make a difference. And once we as college students start utilizing our voice, our politicians will have to listen to us and work for us, and that’s something they haven’t done in the past,” Rue said. Vote in the general election Nov. 5. To learn more about political groups on campus, visit @SouthernMissCollegeRepubli-
Students find absentee voting difficult KARIGAN TEER FEATURE/LIFESTYLE EDITOR or many college students and for people who temporarily move away from home, absentee voting is the only option to be politically involved. Despite absentee ballots being a well-known option for voting, student absentee voters often face challenges when attempting to make their voices heard. Hattiesburg local Mickie Stratos voted in the regular election last year but was out of town for the special run-off elections. Stratos was unable to get the absentee ballot information mailed in on time due to it being so confusing, so they just didn’t vote. “The absentee voting process isn’t very well documented, nor is it easy to find someone who has the
answers,” Stratos said. “Last time I tried, it took me a while to even determine how to submit an absentee ballot and even longer to figure out how to get one.” In Mississippi, absentee voters can contact their Circuit or Municipal Clerk’s Office at any time within 45 days of the election. The Secretary of State website for Mississippi provides clear information for military or overseas citizens who plan to vote through absentee ballot, but it does not provide a clear link for people such as students who wish to utilize an absentee ballot. “I am aware that deadlines exist but I’m not sure what they are. I don’t think [absentee ballots] are advertised well enough, at least not to my market,” Stratos said. Mississippi has made it illegal for third-party organizations such as vote.org to provide or distribute absentee ballot applications. The fastest way to receive an absentee ballot application is by calling the Local Election Office and asking for one.
Stratos said that they believe having the option to request absentee ballots online would help students be more politically involved. “I’ve requested absentee ballots online in other states and it really streamlined the process,” Stratos said. “Absentee voting could be improved for everyone for sure.” Senior public relations major Ty Trehern has voted with an absentee ballot since he has been at Southern Miss. Although he believes the process is simple, he thinks students choose not to vote due to their busy schedules, their lack of political beliefs and their lack of interest in politics. “I feel like college students don’t vote more often because there is so much that goes into politics, and I genuinely think that some students just don’t want to take the time to understand,” Trehern said. “I also think that students are already so busy, that they don’t want to add
onto their already demanding schedules.” Other students choose to simply drive to vote in person. Senior social work major Jane Claire Arender is registered to vote in Rankin County. Since becoming a student at Southern Miss, Arender has driven an hour and a half to her voting precinct. “I prefer to drive because my family holds a value on voting. We have gone as a family to vote over the last few elections,” Arender said. Arender said that she knows that most students are not able to miss class and drive to their voting precincts. Like Stratos, Arender thinks that in order to get more students to vote, absentee ballots should be more easily accessible. “For students, it might be helpful to have absentee ballots accessible on campus and have a collection place on campus, especially for those without cars,” Stratos said. The Circuit Clerk for Forrest County did not respond to request for comment.
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Politicians lack connection with students MEGHAN FULLER PRINTZ REPORTER ocal politicians aim to increase their voting by campaigning to specific neighborhoods but cease to campaign to college students due to money, political views or the lack of appeal. These politicians do not campaign on campus but instead seek out wealthy families in order to push their personal political agenda. While doing this, many students are left indecisive throughout the process of voting. Politicians often do not seek out the college vote due to the lack of student voters. However, voting by college students has doubled since 2018 and still continues to increase, leaving politicians with no excuse. It is most common for politicians to campaign for their own political party, leaving them to steer clear of college campuses. The reason for this is due to the common misconception that most college students are liberals, even though Mississippi is mostly made up of Republicans. While political views do differ throughout a college campus, many students are still unregistered to vote or simply have no party in mind. Although a sensitive topic, voter suppression is very common when voting as a college student. Wanting to “make it just a little more difficult,” Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith joked about
suppressing the college vote in 2018 as if voting wasn’t already wearing for most college students. Many students are away from home. Being away from home forces them to travel or present an absentee ballot in order to vote.
With a lack of political campaigning on campus, students are not guaranteed to vote due to the uncertainty they are left with after the lack of appeal from candidates. Many students feel their vote is unwanted because of
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the scarcity of politicians on campus. Instead, politicians are campaigning throughout Hattiesburg, specifically wealthy neighborhoods or events, in order to gain votes from a targeted demographic. Politicians need to think outside of their own party as well as their own agenda. The only reason politicians aren’t getting the college vote is that they are simply not trying. The only evidence of a campaign throughout campus was the debate between Tate Reeves and Jim Hood on Oct. 10. While students might not be seen as a benefit to some politicians, the college and young adult vote dominates the largest share of eligible voters. College students are among the most passionate of generations and could truly make a difference if given the chance. Although politicians have the power to change these statistics, specifically for college voters, they simply aren’t going to. The college votes are not of importance to most politicians, but this needs to change. College students are eager to vote, and they are eager for change. If politicians step outside of their comfort zone instead of strictly appealing to the wealthy, they might get college voters more interested in their campaign. After all, the future does not belong to the older, wealthy gentlemen at the country club. The future voters of America are waiting on college campuses for politicians to appeal to them and earn their trust.
Milennials gain power in elections LAUREL THRAILKILL PRINTZ REPORTER ver the years, studies have shown young adults vote less than other age groups. According to CampusVoteProject.org, young adults, especially students, move more frequently, are less likely to have a driver’s license and are less likely to be contacted by political campaigns than other age groups. All of these things are barriers for registering to vote and voting. In the election of 2018, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that only 30.1% of 18-24-year-olds voted. To put things in perspective, 65.6% of eligible 65-74-year-olds voted and 49% of the overall, eligible voter population voted. There may be barriers that make it more difficult for some young people to vote, but it is important that they do vote. While young people often vote less than other age groups, they make up a significant portion of the eligible voting population. This means they have the potential to have a lot of influence in politics if more young adults choose to vote. The boomer electorate is also decreasing in size, and experts suggest that millennials will soon be the most influential group in U.S. elections. Studies have shown that people who are repeat voters are less likely
to skip voting in the future. This is why it is crucial to start voting young and form a life-long habit of voting. Many young people who don’t vote say they feel as if their vote doesn’t matter. Millennials, for example, reported feeling “disillusioned” by the 2016 presidential candidates, and as a result, many chose to skip voting. However, individual votes do matter. In 2009, Minnesota Sen. Al Franken won by a mere 312 votes. Because young people are just starting out in their professional lives and careers, they are especially vulnerable to the effects that elections might have on the economy. Student loans and a lack of jobs were financially devastating to young voters after the Great Recession. It is important for young adults to vote for the issues that affect them because they are the ones who will have to live with the consequences the longest. College campuses are now doing more to promote voting as a duty of citizenship, and there are now more resources than ever available to students to aid and guide them in the process of voting should they choose to do so. Some college students may not feel like voting for what politicians they want to represent them is important, but it is likely that their minds could change a few years out of college. There are many unique challenges traditional students will face in the years after college graduation, such as finding a job, buying a house or
Illustration by Derrick “DJ” Reed
buying insurance. All of these things and more are affected by the outcomes of
elections, and that is why all young adults should take the time to cast their votes.
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Should the voting age be LOWER or HIGHER? THE YOUTH VOICE MATTERS KLARIA HOLMES PRINTZ REPORTER Illustration by Kathleen Hetherington | Printz
eenagers in 1971 wanted the right to vote and felt that the laws in place were restrictive and unacceptable. It’s 2019, and it seems like it’s happening again. In 1971, the Twenty-Sixth Amendment lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 surrounded by the statement that if teens were old enough to be shipped off to Vietnam, they should be old enough to vote for their national leaders. It is the quickest amendment ratified in U.S. history. At the time, this made sense; teenagers fresh from high school were being shipped off to fight in a brutal war but didn’t have a say in who their national government leaders were. Much like now, students and other teenagers alike were opinionated and wanted their voices heard – without having to wait three years to do it. Fast forward to now. While we’re not sending 16-year-olds to war, we are facing some of the same dilemmas we were in 1971; the youth have a voice, and it’s one that is increasingly getting louder and should be acknowledged by those in power. We’re no longer in a time period where the youth is uninformed about politics. The upcoming generations have lived through many experiences that have shaped their political views and have shown that they’re not blind to current issues.
For instance, Greta Thunberg, a 16-yearold environmental activist has inspired and empowered millions to stand with her in her fight against the current climate crisis. At age 16, Thunberg has successfully started a climate change movement, becoming one of the many faces associated with the issue, but she cannot vote. This is a problem. Although she is Swedish, she is amongst millions of teenagers who believe that the current state of government isn’t working, and she can’t do anything about it. By keeping the voting age at 18, we are silencing a group of people – regardless of beliefs – that are quickly becoming a majority. It’s not fair. The youth knows what they’re talking about, and giving them the right to vote empowers them to continue fighting for what they believe in. It has also been proven that the youth will show up and vote, if they’re given the chance. There is a right way to go about lowering the voting age. It would be a step backward to lower the voting age without ensuring that this new influx of voters is informed on current political issues. By mandating required classes for new voters, you ensure that this new, voting-age population is informed to make decisions, regardless of which party they align with. It does nothing to introduce a slew of new voters and not give them the chance to be educated.
EIGHTEEN-YEAR-OLDS ARE A PLAGUE BRIAN WINTERS PHOTO EDITOR If a person cannot drink without getting brain development problems, they probably should not be voting in elections that have an effect on the entire United States. On top of that, a person at the age of 21 would most likely be living on their own or at least have more life experience than someone that is either in high school or just graduated high school. The current voting age is 18, but honestly, it should have stayed at 21. A March 1970 testimony from Sen. Edward Kennedy shows why Kennedy believes the voting age should be 18. One of the arguments from Kennedy’s website for lowering the voting age was that 30% of the soldiers in Vietnam at the time
were under the age of 21. I know that draft age and voting age are two different things, but it kind of goes hand in hand with the fact I think anyone under the age of 21 should not be allowed to vote or sent off to war. I do not think some people between the ages of 18 or 20 would be able to think about candidates in a rational way. The University of Rochester Medical Center website said that a teenager’s brain does not fully develop until the age of 25. The University of Rochester also said research has found adult and teen brains work differently, with adults thinking with their prefrontal cortex — the rational part — and teens think with the amygdala — the emotional part. It might sound like the voting age should be 25, but no, that is too much. If the legal drinking age is 21, the voting age should be too. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says on their underage drinking fact sheet that people under 21 who drink alcohol can have life-long changes in brain development. If people can not legally drink alcohol without it messing up their brains, how can we trust them to vote? Twenty-oneyear-olds are almost out of college and have had more life experience than an 18-year-old who is in high school or just graduated. Eighteen-year-olds cannot even start a lawnmower, how can we trust them to vote?
Republicans can never be true allies JACK MCCALLUM ENTERTAINMENT/OPINION EDITOR arty alignment as a member of the LGBTQ community should not be too difficult in 2019. One party believes in the inherently antigay idea of religious freedom while the other does not. The whole idea of a two-party system is pretty terrible, but being LGBTQ and aligning yourself with Republicans is entirely foolish and selfish. The Republican Party has never been a fan of the gays, so those who are voting for them really look clownish. Not only that, but you also look silly if you pretend to be some liberal activist for the queers and you hang out with anti-gay Republicans. For example, Ellen DeGeneres was not just hanging out with some fella who has different beliefs than her, she was defending a president, George W. Bush, who defined marriage as being between a man and a woman. Gay Republicans love to argue about how they are allowed to have different beliefs and how they will not fall for liberals’ identity politics. Sure, that is cute and all, but you are still foolish for going along with a party who votes against your best interest. This is
not about being wild and standing out. This is about voting with who is more likely to value your humanity. Seeing Grindr regulars campaigning on the side of the road for Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves is truly pitiful. Log Cabin Republicans love to pretend that their conservatism does not at all conflict with their gayness. Even if some claim to hate Trump, they will likely still praise Ronald Reagan, ignoring his reaction and role in the AIDS crisis. Since the 2016 election, there has been this idea that this country is so divided and we need to all just hug and get along. This idea was recently promoted by DeGeneres in her awkward, unapologetic statement in response to the controversy surrounding her sitting next to known homophobe Bush. People often misremember Bush as being some moderate, cool guy despite how he was a huge fan of war that was propped up by the far-right evangelicals. It is not like DeGeneres was friendly with someone who voted for a different American Idol winner; she was cosigning a man who actively worked against her best interest. DeGeneres is also supposed to be some gay rights icon because of her sitcom and TIME cover, making this all the more disappointing. At this point, DeGeneres is just another celeb to add to the list of people that have made so much money and lost so
much soul that they can not be trusted. The situation with the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” girls going on “The View” for Meghan McCain’s birthday is comparable to a lesser extent. Nina West and Monet X Change have previously touted themselves as politically forward drag queens. This would make you think they would not be supporting McCain, whose husband is literally the worst, but they still foolishly do. Voting for Republicans when you are not cis or straight does not make you edgy, it makes you sad. Reeves is never going to be in favor of LGBTQ rights. President Trump might have held up a flag with “LGBT for Trump” sloppily written on it, but his policies show he will never value the lives of queer people. Honestly, Attorney General Jim Hood is not some wildly pro-gay politician to be excited for. He actually has a lot of problems involving trans rights, but he is at least far better than Reeves. When you vote for governor on Nov. 5, remember that you are a clown if you vote for Reeves.
Illustration by Derrick “DJ” Reed | Printz
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