The influence of young voters on the 2024 elections

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Young people on both sides of the political divide say the vast majority of their classmates voted or plan to vote in this election.

News 2 spoke with a Vanderbilt University student and a Belmont University student who said there were multiple voter registration events on campus, adding that they were able to have civil debates and discussions despite their differences in political beliefs.

How many Davidson County residents voted in the first 10 days of early voting?

“This is a truly public, publicized and discussed election. This is not ordinary politics, and because it is so engaging for people my age, I think it is understandable that they would be eager to get involved in it,” said Andrew Kyung, a Vanderbilt University student and president of the Vanderbilt College Democrats.

A recent Harvard Youth Poll found that approximately 50% of young voters will vote in person on Election Day, a 35% increase from 2020. The survey found that nearly four in five young Americans vote when their friends do it.

Both students who spoke to News 2 said the shift in attitudes toward young voters wanting their voices heard has been very clear on their campuses.

Tennessee’s early voting numbers are outpacing 2016 numbers and, nine days later, just shy of 2020’s turnout.

According to the Fair Elections Center’s Campus Vote Project, historically, young adults have voted at lower rates than their older cohorts. But students say that won’t happen this election cycle.

“The youth vote will be a success. It will be powerful,” said Mya Conrad, a Belmont University student and president of the Belmont College Republicans. “From what I’ve seen from my fellow voters in the states and beyond, everyone I know is voting. I know very few people, maybe one person I know, missed the voter registration deadline and that was solely because she moved out of state and had this problem.”

On November 5, Americans will go to the polls to choose the next president. Millions of people have already cast ballots through early voting, including here in Tennessee.

More than 150,000 votes were registered in Nashville, where some young voters are working hard to attract people their age to the polls.

“The involvement of young people is extremely important because they are our future,” added Conrad. “I look to the future of my children and grandchildren. My parents aren’t the only ones looking to the future. Not to vote means not to participate.”

“No matter what happens after the election, I hope everything turns out well on campus and also, you know, in the state of Tennessee and in the countryside,” Kyung concluded.

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