By LEAH PALAZUELOS, Age 13
With the Trump vs. Biden election approaching in November, voting is on the forefront of everyone’s minds. Voting is the process of making a decision on not just what presidential candidate you prefer, but also local officials, laws (in the form of ballot measures), members of Congress and more.
There are three primary ways to cast your vote. Early voting, which is available from Oct. 28 to Nov. 5 in New York City, is similar to regular voting, except where and when you vote. Voting by mail is when you send your ballot through the mail instead of voting in person and is available as long as you request an absentee ballot. Regular voting is the most traditional voting method and is held at in-person polls. This year’s presidential election is set to be held on Nov. 5. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2020, 69.4% of voters cast their ballot by mail or early voting, compared to a low 10.5% in 1996. This large increase can be attributed to the COVID pandemic.
In order to vote, you must be over 18 years of age, meet residency requirements, which vary by state, be a U.S. citizen, and meet registration guidelines, which also vary by state.
Voting Rights
When the country was first founded, only white men were allowed to vote. In 1870—almost 100 years after the country’s founding—the 15th Amendment was ratified in order to allow men of all races to vote, and in 1920 white women got the right to vote, too. But some minorities didn’t, and still don’t get the same opportunity to vote despite having the constitutional right. It wasn’t until the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that finally most people in the United States, regardless of their race or gender, were able to vote.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 attempted to end local and state voter suppression, such as literacy tests which were aimed at disqualifying Black Americans in the South from voting, as well as harassment at the polls. Even after the Voting Rights Act was passed, harmful practices are still a large barrier blocking true equality for all races, including photo ID laws, polling place closures, cuts to early voting/vote by mail, proof of citizenship requirements, and restraints on voter registration.
Redistricting, a common procedure involving the shifting of district lines every 10 years after the census, is not in itself a harmful practice. On the other hand, gerrymandering is when these lines are manipulated in order to impact elections or how certain communities are represented, which can give an unfair disadvantage to a certain political party.
The core protections of the Voting Rights Act have been struck down over time by the Supreme Court. In February 2024, the Senate reintroduced the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which, according to the Brennan Center, “would modernize and revitalize the Voting Rights Act of 1965, strengthening legal protections against discriminatory voting policies and practices.”
Social Media and Elections
Social media can have an effect on how people vote, both negatively and positively. According to the Pew Research Center, almost half of young Americans say their news mostly comes from social media, while older generations prefer legacy media, particularly television. While social media can offer a greater diversity in opinion and a more individualized feed than traditional outlets, misinformation, echo chambers and a preference for political content that incites extreme emotion are prevalent on social media outlets.
Misinformation, or false information, is particularly prevalent, as social media can allow false information to be shared with minimal fact-checking. According to GCF Global, an echo chamber is an “environment where a person only encounters information or opinions that reflect and reinforce their own” and “can create misinformation and distort a person’s perspective.” Echo chambers can prohibit people from seeing others’ points of view and can easily be formed because of an individualized feed.
Ultimately, being educated on how to vote, eligibility, voter suppression and social media literacy is crucial for being an informed citizen, especially as elections approach.
