This election, Gen Z and Millennials will prove the skeptics wrong by voting
“Young people don’t vote.”
For millennials, Gen X and Gen Zers that do vote, it’s a frustrating stereotype that we can’t seem to shake.
Even though we outvoted older generations in the 2018 midterms, we still hear it all the time from our older relatives or pundits on TV. It’s as though we aren’t allowed to be frustrated about things because we’ve been labeled as people who don’t show up to the polls. We post to social media, make memes to shed some humor on some of the issues we care about. Then comes the punch line, “Oh, you’re mad? What are you going to do about it?” I’ll tell you one thing that’s certain — this year, I don’t think it can be any easier to vote.
Although the stereotypes drive me crazy, it’s true that there is no excuse for us not to vote. Our state is burning, it’s more difficult than ever to get ahead in this economy, some of us are moving back in with our parents, Zoom tuition costs a fortune, and we might lose the best app since Vine. We need to vote so politicians hear our voices when they’re making decisions about the issues we care about. Thankfully, California’s made it easier than ever for everyone to vote safely, and shut that smarmy challenge right down.
So here is some guidance for this ridiculously easy process:
How does one vote? Let’s start with the basics. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3rd. You had until Oct. 19th to register at vote.ca.gov. No worries if you missed it — you can still register and cast a provisional ballot right up until Election Day, and it’ll get counted in the days following.
The safest and easiest way to vote this year is by mail. California started mailing ballots to all registered voters on October 5th – no need to request one specifically. Each ballot has a unique barcode so it can be counted securely, and postage is prepaid, because who has stamps anymore.
You can track your ballot and get alerts on where it is at WheresMyBallot.sos.ca.gov. Same process as tracking your delivery order, except instead of a burrito bowl it’s your most sacred civic duty.
If you really want to vote in person, I get it — we’re all a little starved for non-Zoom human interaction right now. Most major sporting arenas will be polling locations this year. Be honest — don’t you want to flex on both your followers and future grandkids by saying you got to vote at Dodger Stadium or at the Staples Center?
You can vote on Election Day too if you want to be traditionalist about it — you’re legally allowed to take time off work or school to do so. Bring your mail-in ballot: you can either hand the completed and sealed ballot off to a poll worker, or you can give it to them to shred if you want to vote in person. If you forget, you’ll need to fill out a provisional ballot, which will be counted once the nerds who count all the votes can verify you didn’t also send in a mail ballot.
Will my vote count? Yes. Every vote will be counted, even if it takes a while. Mail ballots are secure — we’ve been doing it since the Civil War. And not even the most talented hacker can break into paper. In-person voting centers will be regularly cleaned and disinfected so you can safely make your voice heard there, too.
In a philosophical sense, yes, your vote will count! We’re not just voting for a president — we’re also voting for the local officials and measures that will determine how we get our housing, our medicine, our justice, and how (or if) we’ll be protected from climate change.
These decisions will be made for us no matter what. We can have a say in how it all goes down, safely and easily. And if we turn out in large numbers, we can finally squash the myth that young people don’t vote.
This story was originally published October 30, 2020 at 12:12 PM.