Anchored In Indifference

This year, my birthday falls on Election Day. My normal, exuberant self would be happy that everyone over 18 can do something amazing on my birthday…the ability to cast a ballot. And trust me, I am so happy to be alive in America with that right to do just that…cast a ballot and vote for the issues, causes, and people I believe will make a difference in our country.

Today, not many people think as I do. In fact, during our last election, 63.7% of men voted, compared to 66.9% of women. Voter turnout varied by educational attainment: 82.5% of those with an advanced degree voted, compared to 77.2% of bachelor’s degree holders and 52.5% of high school graduates. When I think about the difference in voting between educated and non-educated adults, I think about how many hours each person gets in a day. Everyone gets 24 hours each day. No one gets more than 24 hours each day, but unfortunately, some people get fewer than 24 hours on a certain day (death).

I am equally perplexed by this statistic: 47.8% of voting-age US citizens turned out for the average midterm election, compared to 63.8% for the average presidential election. In essence, Presidential elections have higher turnout than midterms. It makes sense to me that I can get more done in my neighborhood through my state and local politicians than I could with anyone who lives at 1400 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. Voter turnout is consistently highest in presidential election years.

Voting could become the great equalizer in our country, but only if we vote in record numbers. In general, white non-Hispanic Americans vote at the highest rates. In 2024, 70.5% of eligible white non-Hispanic people voted, compared to 59.6% of Black voters, 57.1% of Asian voters, and 50.6% of Hispanic voters of any race. Non-Hispanic white, Black, Asian, and Hispanic voters all saw turnout decrease from the 2020 election. Hispanic voters saw the largest decrease, at nearly 6 percentage points. But why do we stop using the one tool that could truly give us a voice in America?

Statistically, older voters turn out more frequently than young voters. In 2024, 47.7% of citizens between the ages of 18 and 24 voted, compared to 60.2% of 25- to 44-year-olds, 70.0% of 45- to 64-year-olds, and 74.7% of people 65 and older.

The year I turned 18, my birthday fell on Election Day. At the time, I could not vote because I was not 18 years old before the voter registration deadline. Now, young people can vote if they are 18 or older on or before Election Day. As a high school teenager and member of our student government, I wrote a letter to my state congressman and the Governor of Ohio, requesting an amendment to that voting provision. I received rejection letters from both the Governor and state congressman regarding amending that voting provision, but I learned a powerful lesson. I had the right to question our government and expected to get answers to my questions.

As a young person growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio, I was anchored in my truth. I was growing in my knowledge of journalism and the free press. I felt comfortable questioning authority. I cared enough about our state and country to know my vote mattered. Realistically, a lot has changed since my first college-level journalism class, but my values have remained strong.

I am proud of the fact that women have been outvoting men in this country. Women have had higher voting turnouts than men for decades; 1980 was the first presidential election year when women reported voting at a higher rate than men (59.4% of women versus 59.1% of men), and they’ve voted at higher rates in every presidential election since. Do the issues of the day affect men differently than women? Don’t we all need to eat, educate our children, obtain gainful employment, and secure shelter?

In essence, why is the voting participation rate in America not at 95%? Why such apathy and indifference? Every home should have conversations about the honest change we can make in our country. All of us matter. If we did not matter, why would the powerful want to take away our rights to a free and fair election? At this very moment, we have powerful men and women who want nothing more than to feed upon voter apathy.

I am proud to say that I have voted in every election since I turned 18 years old, whether it was a midterm or presidential election. Why? Because every vote STILL MATTERS. Anchor yourself in truth…not indifference.