During the run-up to the 2020 election, there was a concerted effort by voters and political leaders alike to encourage the youth of the country to vote in the 2020 election. The Harbor News took a look at the numbers to see if Clinton’s youth heeded the call.

Every presidential election ad campaigns and political volunteers target young voters of America to try to motivate them to vote. In 2020 a worldwide pandemic, explosive racial tensions, and exceptionally divisive political rhetoric contributed to people of all ages clamoring for sweeping changes to institutions ranging from the healthcare system to policing to environmental conservation.

Once again, politicians took the airwaves and social media to encourage young people to vote as a way to try and implement reform to the system. In Clinton, the call for youth voters was made explicitly at a June 7 rally held in downtown Clinton to protest against police brutality and support the Black Lives Matter movement.

The rally was attended by more than 300 mostly young people. The event was attended by candidates from the Democratic and Republican party running for seats in the state legislature, all of whom urged the attendees to vote as part of the solution to fix the systemic issues talked about at the rally.

Following the 2020 presidential election, the Harbor News took a look at the numbers to see just how many young voters heeded that call to action. According to numbers provided by the registrars of voters on June 10, there were 1,369 registered voters in Clinton between the ages of 18 and 30. As of Nov. 18, the registrars stated there are now 1,711 registered voters in that age range, an increase of 342 (about a 25 percent increase in registrations ).

In the 2016 election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, 833 people in Clinton aged 18 to 30 turned up to vote (11 percent of total vote). In the 2020 election, 1,138 people aged 18 to 30 turned out to vote—about 67 percent of registered voter in that age range. This time. that age group accounted for about 15 percent of the total Clinton vote.

The registrar’s numbers state that between Jan. 1, 2020 and Election Day, there were 483 people age 18 to 30 who registered to vote for the first time.

What’s Next

While the increase in youth turnout is noticeable and will be largely commended, what remains to be seen is how active the youth voters are in matters that directly affect Clinton.

Presidential and to some degree midterm elections get significant attention from the national media and pundits, however the municipal elections like the one held in 2019 or the one that will be held in 2021 do not receive the same amount of buzz. However, those municipal elections are still important to the day-to-day lives of citizens. In fact, it’s often argued that the leaders at the local level will have more of an impact on the daily lives of residents than the president will.

For example in Clinton, some of the positions that will be determined by the 2021 election include which party will have a majority on the Town Council and be able set town policies, who will serve on the police commission that provides oversight to the police department, who will serve on the Board of Education and determine the curriculum for students, and the Planning & Zoning Commission members who get a say in deciding what kinds of developments can or can’t come into town.

In the 2019 municipal elections, only 219 members in the 18 to 30 age range turned out to vote, accounting for only six percent of the total vote. By comparison in that same municipal election, people aged 60 to 75 accounted for 37 percent of the all the votes cast in the election.

Some of the discrepancy in turnout numbers between the two age ranges can likely attributed to young people being on the whole less established in their careers and living situations when compared to older people who are more likely to have longer roots in the community. For example, a 20-year-old with no kids may not be concerned with who is on the Board of Education in town. However, young people are the group that will face the longest-term consequences of those votes.

The town has been trying to attract young people and young families to Clinton in a variety of ways for several years. New budding developments proposed in town such as the Indian River Landing project and the proposed developments at the former Unilever property have been lauded in part for the chance that they will bring more young people as well as their money to Clinton. One way that young people can wield their power to help make Clinton a more desirable place for their age range is by voting for politicians who have policies that align with their values on social, fiscal, and development issues.

In 2020, young people in Clinton and across the country were confronted some of the serious issues the nation needs to address and responded by voting in high numbers. Whether the passion and motivation that caused the large youth turnout continues after the spotlight moves on from the presidential elections remains to be seen.