How to Get Involved
To combat the problem of young voter apathy, groups like Rock the Vote and Choose or Lose are
ramping up their efforts to get teens and young adults to the polls.
Even the WWE has set up Smackdown
Your Vote, a website dedicated to getting young wrestling
fans to register and vote.
The path to “getting involved” in the election depends
on just how involved you’d like to get. Casting a vote is probably
the most powerful and efficient way to be involved, but if you feel
especially passionate about swaying others to your candidate’s point
of view, you can definitely do more.
Every major candidate has a website with all the info
you need about participating in local group meetings (called “Meetups”),
making donations (even via PayPal),
and volunteering to help get your candidate’s message to the masses.
Here is a list of websites for each of the candidates we’ve mentioned:
What If I’m Not 18?
Just because you’re not of legal voting age doesn’t mean
you can’t participate in this year’s election. Anyone can volunteer
for a campaign or for some other politically minded organization.
If you’re interested in human rights, educate eligible voters on
the death penalty. If you love the outdoors, volunteer to work on
an environmental group’s voter registration drive.
Most important, talk to your parents and other adults
in your life about the upcoming election. This election is about
your future, so it’s your right and responsibility to help elect
candidates who care about the issues that matter most to you.
Learn About Your Other Candidates
Picking the next president is only the beginning. With
all the discussion in the media of Bush and Kerry, it's easy to
forget there's a whole ballot-full of candidates underneath them.
This fall, every voter in the fifty states will elect
a member of congress to the House of Representatives and/or the
Senate. And depending on where you live, you might also get
to cast your vote for governor, state legislator, mayor, dogcatcher—the
list goes on—as well as a slew of local ballot initiatives.
The president you elect on November 2 will have a lot
of power. But he won't have the power to make laws; only Congress
can do that. He won't have the power to decide what's taught in
schools; that's up to your governor. And he won't be able to prohibit
same-sex marriage, legalize marijuana, or put an end to strip mining
(but if you live in Montana you might be doing all three in direct
referendums).Every choice you make on Election Day will affect
you in some way. Take a few minutes to learn about who and what
is on the ballot so you can make informed decisions. This is democracy
in action, people—let's make it work.Check out the following websites
to learn more about federal, state, and local candidates:
- The Democratic (www.democrats.org) and Republican (www.gop.org) Parties
Read up on each party’s agenda for the next four
years. You’ll also find links to their official party platforms,
which were presented at the national conventions.
- DemocracyNet,
presented by the League of Women Voters and Congress.org
During each election cycle, the League of Women
Voters distributes a questionnaire on a wide range of issues to
every federal and state candidate and prints their responses unedited.
- Project
Vote Smart
This nonpartisan organization compiles ratings
from special interest groups—how often did your candidate vote with
the Humane Society? National Right-to-Life Committee? American Legion?—and
administers a "National Political Awareness Test" for incumbents.
- On the Issues
Advanced VoteMatch technology nutshells your candidates
and elected officials with epithets like "Populist-Leaning Liberal"
or "Moderate Conservative" based on their voting record and positions
on the issues. The site draws candidates' stances from a wide range
of sources beyond voting records, including quotes from the candidates'
own books.
