Introduction
Youth voter turnout has the power to shift election outcomes, placing the priorities and needs of our youth and future at the forefront of our nation’s leaders (Fisher, 2012). Youth voter engagement is of the utmost importance, for it curates the creation of the future they will live in. The demographics of young voters do not mirror those of the youth themselves (Fisher, 2012). This comprehensive research paper investigated the ways in which digital technologies and social media can be used to engage young voters in politics and elections, zeroing in on which methods are the most effective. This paper explored the effects of increased youth voter participation in elections, the disparities in the demographics of young voters, and the demographic discrepancies across the bipartisan system. Additionally, this paper addressed the makeup of both the Republican and Democratic parties, the overall demographic disparities within electoral participation, the digital technologies most used by youth voters, and more.
Abstract
The present comprehensive research paper investigated the ways in which digital technologies and social media can be used to engage young voters in politics and elections. The secondary analysis research method was enacted with aims to identify the most productive methods to engage young voters while using them. It is evident, more now than ever, that technology is a part of every aspect of our lives, making politics and elections no different. The votes of the youth carry a weight heavy enough to change the outcomes of elections, raising the priorities of the youth to the desks of our nation’s leaders (Fisher, 2012). The engagement of youth voters is of the utmost importance, for the voices of the youth are the voices of the future. Digital technologies such as cell phones, social media apps, and web-based systems are most used by young voters (Ohme. 2019). The key inquiry that guided this body of work was “What are the ways in which digital technologies and social media can be used to engage young voters in politics and elections?”. It was found that the digital technologies most effectively used to engage young voters are email marketing and text messaging campaigns, digital voter registration platforms, social media, and campaign-established web-based networks that allow supporters to interact directly with one another, share resources, and more.
Keywords: social media, elections, digital technology, politics, young voters, youth mobilization, presidential campaigns
To read the full paper, visit: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ufD7EeYulSDHlTuhN2pruM8sW51QYscH/view?usp=sharing
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