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Essay on change in voting age
The importance of the voting age
Negative consequences after lowering voting age
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Voting is important to make sure that the government operates the way it’s designed to and make sure that the citizen’s beliefs are heard by the country political system. From 1781-1971 the voting rights have changed drastically. It started with only allowing men who owned property and were 21 and older to vote. It changed allowing 21 and older to vote regardless of race or ethnic background. Women were later allowed to vote. Finally the 26th amendment lowered the voting age to 18 (Voting History). When a group or person is voting, they are expressing an opinion following a discussion, debate, or campaign. Many people of all ages vote, 18 to 20 year olds are only a small part of the votes. When voting for your country or anything you should know what you are voting for. Many teens don’t. Their votes can be influenced by parents and peers making their votes not true. Being a teen you are not educated enough to even know or understand what they are voting for. The United States Government should increase the legal voting age to allow teens to wait until they fully understand what they are voting for and let them gain their own values to vote for what they think is right.
Children grow up learning and doing what their parents do. What is to stop them from voting like their parents? In the article, “Parents Influence Children’s Political Attitudes” they interviewed a girl named Elisabeth Maylone. She stated that she depended on her parents for her first vote (Madormo, Mary). If she depended on her parents so could others. 71% of teens say their social and political ideology is the same as mom and dads (Lyons, Linda). One might argue that since their parents believe something, then they believe the same thing. But, h...
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... to run our government and we trust them to lead us correctly. Teens are not mature enough to make decide such a big thing. They will vote just like parents making their votes influenced. Many teens are not educated enough to know world affairs. The country is not like it was when the age was lowered to 18. Our generations are different and many too immature to be voting on big issues about our government.
Works Cited
Lyons, Linda. "Teens Stay True to Parents' Political Perspectives." Teens Stay True to Parents' Political Perspectives. N.p., 4 Jan. 2005. Web. 04 Feb. 2014.
Madormo, Mary. "Parents Influence Children’s Political attitudes." First Vote 2012. N.p., 30 Nov. 2011. Web. 05 Feb. 2014.
"Voting History." Voting History. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2014.
"Young Adult Development Project." Young Adult Development Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Feb. 2014.
When examining voting behavior over time, there are two areas one must look at to gain a better understanding of the process. The first, is why people vote the way they do, and the second looks at the individuals voting pattern over time. Since 1960, The American Voter, written by Campbell, Converse, Miller & Stokes, is still considered one of the most controversial pieces in the field of public opinion and election studies. Although there are numerous areas of exploration, the main purpose of this book was to further examine the psychological relationship of the voter from pre-adolescence to casting the tangible vote and the effects of parent-child socialization. A crucial argument presented states that party identification is the most important
...adults compared to older adults were less likely to respond that voting was extremely important for good citizenship (133). He concludes that it is too late for the generation of young adults that do not feel voting is an important civic responsibility, however, that it is not too late to convince them that politics matter by showing them that they are giving their opportunity to make important decisions that may impact their lives to others who have different ideas. One may agree with Wattenberg’s idea that habits follow people throughout their lives instead of changing as they cycle in life. His personal accounts are an impactful way to illustrate the importance of building a sense of duty at a young age and carrying that responsibility throughout one’s life.
Millions of citizens around the United States, at some point in their lifetime, obtain a political ideology. Typically, their political values are influenced by their parents. Political scientists have identified that around age eleven, children begin to develop political opinion. According to Wilson’s, American Government: Institutions and Policies, 91% of a high school senior class indentified with the same party as their parents (American Government 158). I can attest to this since I in fact have the same party association as my parents. Ever since I was young, I categorized myself as a Democrat due to the fact that my elders were. However, as I have matured I am able to recognize the beliefs and ideologies that followers of certain parties possess. Since I have been more exposed to the political arena I am able analyze the issues more critically and hence I continuously question whether I should classify myself as a Democrat or Republican.
As of the ratification of the 26th amendment in 1971, the voting age in the US is 18. As I turn 18 this coming summer I now have the chance to participate in elections local, state, and national wide. The history of youth voting has changed over time with that more 18-24 year olds are voting as time goes on. The question comes to mind about voting in that why would someone want to vote and if it’s just a waste of time. I believe that if people have the chance to vote, then they should which is why I am going to vote in elections to come in the future.
Its often considered that ignorance is bliss and being a child you are nothing but ignorant to the worlds violence and political system. You don’t have the ability to understand what politically is transpiring around you. Knowing that now I wonder what kind of father would ever want to expose his children to the world’s political scrutiny. My father was one of the people who felt I should be politically active at a young age. He as a parent had a huge impact on my Political Socialization (Ward, 2010). He felt I should have an understanding of what is happening politically now so in the future I can understand why something is happening. So as a child my dad would take us to political rallies that at the time I had no idea where political. My most early memory of going to a political event was a strike by UPS workers in Greenville. My dad belonged to the UPS union and the union was arguing for somet...
When I was younger I moved a lot and went to many different schools with different people from different socioeconomic backgrounds and I believe that has played a pivotal role in shaping my political awareness and understanding. In high school, while political discussions were limited, I was never one to shy away from controversial topics, usually questioning or challenging the opinions of teachers and peers, which exposed me to the complexities of American politics. At the University of Rochester, it has been my peers who have further expanded my understanding of different political ideologies and systems, enriching my perspective on global politics. Interactions with peers from diverse backgrounds have challenged and enriched my political beliefs. Engaging in debates and conversations with friends who hold varying viewpoints has forced me to critically examine my own perspectives and values.
Although there are 44 million eligible young voters ages 18-29, in 2012 only 45% of them voted. These young people make up one fifth, or 21%, of the eligible voting population, yet they often do not vote. Voting is a tremendous gift! Young people in many other countries around the world have to fight to gain this right. In America, voting is often taken for granted by all age groups, but the youth take it for granted the most.
As I have stated before, childhood influence has a significant impact mainly because of the long term amount time and emotion spent during these early years. However, the political leanings of parents and their environment have such a strong influence on children because it is all they know up to that point. Children are impressionable, but this does not mean that these impressions are indelible. If the political leanings of parents are so important, wouldn’t other beliefs that they possess influence children the same amount? Children would then reflect the beliefs of their parents continually. Obviously this is not the case. Childhood influence is important, but it is definitely not the only factor that determines party identification.
Although not all early socialization is dangerous, one could hopefully see how it is important to assess certain political and religious views in order to change them for the better and promote the welfare of our country as a whole. Examining our preconceived notions about the world around us helps to determine what may be helpful or harmful in advancing as a nation. In order to achieve maximum impact as valuable citizens, voters and consumers in our society it is important to be engaged and well informed on critical, up to date news and politics in our environments and to not solely rely on the words, beliefs or ideals of those close to us.
Malcolm X once said, “The media’s the most powerful entity on earth… Because they control the minds of the masses.” With the help of advanced media, arguments continue to erupt in the United States on whether we should lower the voting age to 16. Some citizens say lowering the voting age could be beneficial to the country and others oppose that claim. Americans often trust what reporters write in articles and say on television and radio stations. They expect all that they report is the truth, but issues such as lowering the voting age can be interpreted in many different ways.
Sitting in class and looking at Trump, Clinton, and Sanders and I think to myself “Whom do I even want to vote for? Maybe I should not vote this year.” As I continue discussing with my inner voice, I confuse myself even more. Being exposed to politics in this class a tad more than before, has aroused confusion in my decision-making and which political party I belong to. As a child, I remember cheering for the Democratic presidential candidates, when their speeches aired on television. Maybe I was a Democrat only because my parents are Democrats. What better way to analyze my parents’ influence on my political views, than doing my own research and discovering new political ideas? In Erika Patterson’s article, “Do Children Just Take Their Parents'
The family influences children at a young age when parent's political viewpoints are unconditionally and naturally accepted. This information guides our first political preferences and opinions and statistically is the majority of the ideals we retain. Later on in life, as children mature and are able to make their own rational decisions, most retain the political values instilled in them at a young age and over time may relate them to peers. Varying agents of socialization, like education and media influence our political opinions as adults. While some of the tactics used by these modes are obvious, others are less direct. Supplementary information can be gained from methods appealing to long-
In the essay, “Give children the vote,” (1998) the author, Vita Wallace argues for the rights of children. Basing her argument on opinion, Wallace presents her own life to explain the gist of her argument. Being a 16 year old, Wallace shares her points of view from this stage in her life, the stage where she is not quite an adult, but feels like she is. Wallace is upset with the lack of freedom given to children, and her claim is focused on children voting. “What I suggest is that children be allowed to grow into their own right to vote at whatever rate suits them individually,” Wallace states (1998, p.145). In fact, Wallace believes she would have been ready to vote when she was 8 or 9, maybe even sooner.
The voting age shouldn’t be lowered to thirteen because they're not responsible enough they don’t know what’s going on in life say for instance they probably don’t know what’s a democrat or a republican. Another reason is that there’s been 100,000 people under 13 or 16 that tried to get the right to vote it was denied because the people that runs it didn’t want them to vote because they're too young to understand what’s going on in life.
Political socialization is defined as the way your opinions are formed by your environment. Through past experiences, upbringing, friends, family and clubs within a particular school system, we are all experiencing a type of socialization. The way that we vote is also influenced by these factors. “The areas of adolescent media use, and political socialization, areas rarely overlap, Media-use studies usually only peripherally examine consumption of public affairs and political content, often because the research involves younger children.” ("Political Socialization and the High School Civics Curriculum in the United States."