Trinity Tunstall

Guest Columnist

Engaged youth – intelligent young people eager to have a voice – are dissuaded from voting.

An unanticipated high youth voter turnout this midterm will revolutionize American politics.

Trinity Tunstall attends Father Ryan High School and serves on the Nashville Mayor's Youth Council.

Decisions are made by those who show up, and let’s face it: young people don’t show up.

We may turn on notifications for the news app to keep up to date on current events or use Twitter to raise our voices about a pressing social issue, but we haven’t been a reliable demographic when it comes to actually going to the polls.

Politicians know this, and they’re counting on us staying silent this November.

You may dismiss my thoughts – after all, I’m only a high school senior, 17 years old, not even old enough to legally vote in the upcoming election.

I admit, I am in an unusual position to be commenting on this topic, but I am surrounded by peers both graduated and completing their last year of high school for whom the November midterm will be their first time ever eligible to cast a ballot.

Yet, some will not.

Engaged youth – intelligent young people eager to have a voice – are dissuaded from voting. They are convinced that their vote won’t count. Except in this midterm election, every vote counts.

And it’s not a matter of apathy; as the world has seen, young people have beliefs and aren’t afraid to express them. I see it in conversation on social media and in the classroom.

Young people must put their passion to action

I see it in our passion by the way we discuss this country’s leaders, policies, and political discourse. I have seen it when, with the help of the Mayor’s Youth Council, 2,755 high school students have registered to vote this year.

I see it in the way we utilize the internet to form communities and connect with a broader audience, sharing our ideas and beliefs for the world to see. I see it in the way we take to the streets in protest for our safety.

I see it when we bravely celebrate our identities and our rights.

I see our conviction, and I know that it means, more than many care to admit, that young people do in fact care, because we know what is at stake: Our future.

With 36 gubernatorial positions, 33 Senate seats (one third), and all 435 House of Representatives seats up for election, the 2018 midterm has the potential to transform American politics.

We can revolutionize American politics

The outcomes of Nov. 6 will have certain and lasting consequences for this country. This election will affect the ability of our current administration to push policy. It will impact the performance of current legislative agendas. It will determine party majorities and minorities and the confirmation of future Supreme Court nominations.

Nov. 6, 2018, will define our country for generations to come. An unanticipated high youth voter turnout this midterm will revolutionize American politics, and this revolution will be televised.

I know we as young people have a lot to say; the November midterm is our opportunity to say it. If you approve or disprove of the status quo, send a message, speak out, cast your vote.

Democracies don’t work without participation. It’s time to make our representatives represent their newest constituents.

They aren’t counting on young people to turnout this election; let’s prove them wrong.

Trinity Tunstall attends Father Ryan High School and serves on Metro Nashville's Mayor's Youth Council.