Is Gen Z Too Apathetic to Vote?
It is well known that Gen Z (18 and older) hasn't been turning out to vote in large enough numbers. The generation often described as the most progressive is also expected to show up at the polls, yet many didn't. Gen Z can complain about issues they face on social media, such as affordable housing, women's rights, LGBTQ+ rights, mental health, education, and more, but remain inactive when it comes to voting. The question I'm asking is: Is Gen Z voter apathy a real thing? Well, let's take a look.
Looking Back at What Happened
Let's look back at the 2024 presidential election. Over 150 million people cast their votes. According to the Grand Bargain Project, only about 20 million eligible Gen Z voters cast ballots, meaning millions of eligible Gen Z voters did not participate. So why is the number of Gen Z voters so low? Here are some of the main reasons, beyond transportation issues, work obligations, limited voter education, or family emergencies.
One older peer I spoke with suggested that the biggest reason is simply laziness. Based on her experience, she felt that many young people are given plenty of information about elections but still choose not to vote. You can throw all of the information at a young person, and they still wouldn't go vote. Why is that? It's because they're lazy, which means they wouldn't care.
Another older peer shared a different perspective, saying that many people don't become politically engaged until an issue directly affects their own lives. We shouldn't wait until people, especially Gen Z, are affected before we start caring enough to get up and vote. I remember this from my college years.
A college peer of mine told me that he didn't bother to vote because he didn't know any of the people on the ballot. This was during the 2018 midterm election season when he told me this, even though a number of Gen Z couldn’t vote at that time due to their age and only 31% of young people (this includes millennials back then) between ages 18-29 voted. In the age of technology we live in, even back then, there’s no excuse not to know them because you can look up any of the candidates online on your phone. But of course, there are going to be people out there who choose not to research any of the candidates online.
Another reason why turnout is so low is that a number of Gen Z voters don't think their vote will make a difference. They care about what's going on around them but don't think voting is effective enough to create change. They see what's going on in the news on TV or on their phones almost every day. Most of the time, it isn't good news. It's the same for me, as I see the news every so often as well.
It might discourage them from voting and make them think, "What's the point?"
Looking Ahead to Answering the Question
So, is Gen Z really apathetic when it comes to voting? Well, I can say that some young folks don't care enough to vote, but they do care about the issues that affect them in their everyday lives.
One way to get more Gen Z members to vote is through education. Education is one of the main drivers of voter participation, along with encouraging Gen Z to care enough to take action. As we get older, these issues will affect us more and more as we start our careers, buy homes, get married, and have kids, if they choose to. One step at a time, and as the years go by, more members of Gen Z will care enough to get out and vote.