Throughout the country many American will vote in local elections
this November. While many Americans are gearing up for the elections of
next November, progressives and democrats alike would take heed to pay
attention to local elections only two months away. I have already written a
article about the volunteering I do for the Shapiro/Richards campaign for
Montgomery Country (PA) Commissioner, however, I am troubled by
something I have noticed while campaigning.
While working at the phone bank something I noticed troubled me, a
majority of registered democrats that I have called are over forty. According
to wikipedia, in 2010 there were 262,204 registered democrats in
Montgomery County. I know I have only called maybe two to three hundred
registered democrats, mostly in the Lansdale area where I live, however, I
don’t remember more then fifteen of them even being under forty. Lansdale
isn’t the largest town in Montgomery County by far, but only maybe 15
registered democrats under forty years old troubles me.
I am thirty-one and all I can do is wonder where are the rest of the
democrats my age? In my opinion, the Democratic Party has a great appeal
for younger Americans. Democratic ideals favor workers rights, access to
public education, expansion of health care, and a bottom up approach that
gives hope to those striving for their futures in this great country. A future
which will be lost if we can’t find a way to not only appeal to these younger
generations, but get them to vote. Sharing these ideals do little but create
interesting discussions unless we vote.
The ballot box is one of the greatest gifts the founders gave us. Our
greatest hopes and aspirations can come true at the polls; we can also be
confronted with our greatest fears. These fears I talk about are a turn to the
far right spectrum that attacks everything we stand for. We must find a way
to reach out to younger Americans. I know it will be one of the causes that
ProgressMo Shuffle will take on in these coming months.
I feel if we can have a strong showing in these local elections,
especially a strong showing from younger voters we can gain momentum
going into the election year of 2012. Any suggestions to appeal to younger
voters will be more than welcomed. This is a cause that all Progressives and
Democrats have to take on. The future of our ideals depends on this.