On June 30, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon signed into law the 26th Amendment to the United States Constitution. The 26th Amendment lowers the voting age from the original age of 21 to the new age of 18. How has America’s youth exercised this new power? In almost every election since 1971, the 18-34 age group has had the greatest percentage of NON-voters. Those that currently fall within that age range -- the millennials -- have the world at their fingertips through ubiquitous mobile devices. One might assume that millennials are therefore exposed to enough to form an opinion on any given issue, including politics. Yet statistics and studies tell us that millennials differ from other generations for a variety of reasons.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2014 the percentage of people who voted from the 18 to 34 age group was 23.1%, as opposed to 37.8% for 35 to 44 year olds, 49.6% for 45 to 64 year olds, and 59.4% for ages 65 and up. This suggests that the millennials are extreme outliers when it comes to participation in voting. Perhaps this is because millennials identify themselves more independently than, for example, the baby boom generation, a generation that precedes the millennials, does. According to a poll of 18 to 29 year olds conducted by the Reason and Rupe Foundations, 34% of millennials consider themselves truly politically independent, compared to 10% of the older generation.

That same poll found that nearly 62% of millennials consider themselves liberal, but that being liberal does not have as much to do with traditional politics and the government as it does with current cultural hot topics such as the legalization of marijuana and of gay marriage. Because of these views, some people argue that millennials are not voting because they simply do not care enough about the “right things”, namely the traditional political process, to express their opinions. By contrast, in the baby boom generation, a liberal extolled the virtues of expanding the reach and spending of the government. Therefore being a liberal had a political connotation, unlike the millennial’s take on being a liberal. The older Americans who look upon millennials and criticize them believe that it is important to affiliate oneself with the political left or right, because that is how they view the government and political activity: How should we handle our foreign affairs? Should the government increase its spending? How are my individual liberties protected? Being a younger millennial myself, I do not yet consider my knowledge on different political views deep enough to identify myself with a certain political party. However, I do think that it is important to consider both the cultural issues of today along with the more traditional political issues and the role of government because in the end, both of these categories apply to our society in their own unique way and therefore they will have a lasting impact on you and your community whether or not you choose to express your opinion through political action.

Not only do millennials have a free range of information readily available for them whenever they need it, but they are also growing up and coming into the workforce more educated than previous generations. According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 21% of millennial men are completing at least a bachelor's degree, as opposed to 17% from the boomer generation. For women, 27% of millennials have obtained a bachelor’s degree, compared to 14% of the boomer generation. Not only does this show the increase in education level from generation to generation, but the percentage of women versus men shows the willingness of the millennials to view things through a different lens; namely, gender equality. These statistics show that millennials do not listen to the social norms of the past and to pave their own paths through life. As previously stated, since the boomer generation, the percentage of men with a bachelor’s degree has risen 4% while the same percentage for women has risen 13%. From this data, it is clear that millennials are educated and passionate enough about some issues to act as a vehicle for change. Millennials tend to favor more of a social or societal issue to act upon instead of the more traditional political issues.

Despite this leap forward in obtaining post-secondary educational success, the statistics cited above show that millennials come up short when voting at the polls. Another aspect to consider: despite their degrees, the millennials cannot find jobs with the same ease as the relatively less educated boomers. Perhaps the millennials have lost faith in the accessibility of the American Dream; that working hard their whole life might not bring them success and prosperity. Even though they have seemingly worked harder than prior generations to go to college, they are falling behind their parents in their quality of life. This loss of hope and confidence in attaining financial security -- the American Dream --  can also translate into a loss of faith in the government to to make the dream acheivable, so they refrain from voting.

Finally, as reported by a Harvard study, 35% of 18 to 29 year olds said that they had “not much” confidence in the government to do what is right, and 14% said that they had “no” confidence. In this case, millennials do in fact want change but they do not believe that voting is an effective vehicle of change for them.

So with all of this information, I hope that next time you go to criticize a millennial, you fully think of what is going through their minds at the very same time. After all, the millennials are the future, so we have no choice but to believe that in the end, they will do what they believe is right for our country. All we have to do is trust them.