Picture yourself on a first date. It’s going pretty well, you both have things in common and you’re laughing at each others’ jokes. Everything is perfect about the person until they ask the question. The question that everyone is asking these days; the deal-breaking question that unearths all of the ugliest truths out of even the prettiest of people.

  “So, are you republican or democrat?”

  Teenagers these days seem like they’re afraid of this question. Is it because they are afraid of being judged for their views? Maybe it’s because they don’t know where they stand? Or maybe they’re too cool to think about it? The fact is that the new generation of voters have a massive say in what our government does and teenagers often times don’t realize the impact they can actually have on our society.

  With thousands of platforms of social media, it’s not difficult to find information. All it takes is a simple click and you can read about any presidential candidate, or even watch a recent debate. Yet for some reason, people still find reasons not to educate themselves on current events and politics.

  Relying solely on the media for information on presidential candidates (and politics in general) narrows your view, and can alter the way you see certain candidates or events. Numerous studies have shown that the population in general just doesn’t know a lot about local politics, let alone worldly issues. According to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center, only 54 percent of the public knew what the unemployment rate was in the United States. And while 85 percent of people knew what Twitter was, only 46 percent knew that Greece was being bailed out by the European Union at the time the survey was completed. The public knows so little and even when they are aware of something, they only know the basic facts and don’t understand the entire issue at hand (debate.org).

  Senior Kelly Wheat said, “I think it’s extremely important for everyone to have their own views and not to be pressured into thinking what the majority is thinking. We have to utilize the opportunity we have that gives us a voice in how the world will turn out in the long run, because soon it will be our world.”

   According to the United States Census, the voting rate for the last Presidential election, for ages 18-29, was about  45 percent — compared to about 38 percent in 1996 (census.gov). Even though the percentage of young adults voting has gone up, it needs to be much higher. Our futures are at stake. This presidential election will impact many aspects of people’s everyday lives.

  So you might see yourself as an awkward, uninfluential teen who is just trying to pass AP Literature, but the reality is you hold a lot of political influence. Politics control our everyday world and it is important to stay involved. So let’s pause that episode of Friends, get in your crappy starter car and go vote. And even if you aren’t old enough to vote, stay informed, because pretty soon your vote will count, just as much as your parents’.