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The Voter’s Speakeasy featuring unbiased reporting and insight into life at Vote Smart from our staff, interns, and volunteers.

Share Vote Smart With A Millennial Voter

2016 June 07

“Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” – James Madison

According to research collected by CIRCLE, only 21.5% of millennials (Americans aged 18-29) voted in the 2014 midterm elections. While young people have historically lower voter turnout than older generations, the youth turnout in 2014 was “the lowest ever recorded in a federal election,” according to CIRCLE’s data.

Today’s young people are rejecting participation in democracy by not voting in elections. Millennial voters are letting their grandparents vote for them, allowing other generations to decide the future of their country for them.

Why?

Are they apathetic? Uninterested? Too busy with their cellphones to care about politics?

For a slim few, perhaps. However, it appears that most millennials believe that they are lacking reliable, nonpartisan knowledge.

According to a 2015 Harvard Institute of Politics survey of 3,034 millennials aged between 18 and 29, 47% of respondents believe that they need more practical information about politics before they get involved, and 50% believe that politics have become too partisan.

This research shows that millennials are seeking non-partisan facts and informational resources in order to feel comfortable with getting involved in the political process. To provide non-partisan resources to millennial voters, media outlets and society alike need to promote and monetarily support non-profit organizations, such as Vote Smart who collect non-partisan, unbiased facts, and easy-to-understand political information.

When millennials have these tools at their fingertips, they have an ...

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What is a Contested Convention?

2016 May 26

"Following an unusual primary season, we may see a contested convention for the first time in a long time."
Read Vote Smart's breakdown of contested conventions.

The Balancing Act of Determining Discrimination

2016 May 17

Multiple “religious freedom” bills are currently capturing the attention of state legislatures across the country. “Religious freedom” bills are proposed legislation that call for religious organizations, businesses, and individuals to be protected from penalties for declining to provide services to individuals whose lifestyle conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs.

May Common Ground E-Newsletter

2016 May 06

May Common Ground E-Newsletter: See what is going on at Vote Smart!

Political Research Wrap-Up: Spring 2016

2016 April 27

 Political news that you may have missed this spring

The Plan to Close Guantanamo Bay

2016 April 21

 For years, the Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, located in Cuba, has been used by the United States government to house potential threats to national security. Throughout its existence, it has been met with numerous accusations, scandals, and an ongoing debate over alleged human rights violations. Recently, President Barack Obama proposed a plan to effectively shut down the facility.

Polarization of the Supreme Court Vacancy

2016 April 13

 On February 13, 2016, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away. According to the United State Constitution, the president-elect is responsible for nominating the replacement justice, and the Senate is then responsible for confirming or denying that nomination; however, some politicians are calling for President Barack Obama to abstain from the nomination, leaving 8 justices to make judicial decisions for almost a year.

Can Someone Please Tell Me What is Happening?

2016 March 31 - Richard Kimball

 Our political culture is shifting course on a galactic scale right in front of our slackened jaws. Its destination unknown?

Presidential Foreign Policies

2016 March 30

 ..foreign policy has become one of the main focuses of the election cycle. Each presidential candidate has their own take on foreign policy and America's role in the Middle East right now.

Bathroom bills bearing down on states across America

2016 March 11

 Emerging onto the floor of numerous state legislatures across the United States of America is a new and divisive kind of legislation: “bathroom bills.” Bathroom bills are proposed legislation that address whether individuals may use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender they identify with or with the gender they were assigned at birth. 

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