User:Nivekt12/Youth vote in the United States

Campaign strategies

Democratic and Republican local party leaders were asked in a study whether they viewed young voters as a priority and if they had implemented programs in order to mobilize the young vote. The data collected by the study demonstrated that local Democratic leaders were more likely to have programs targeting young voters than Republican local leaders. Also, Democrat local leaders were more likely to categorize young voters as high priority targets of these programs while Republicans took a more generalized approach. When asked to give specific details about what the programs run by local party leaders entailed, many respondents of the study were unable to give reliable recounts, indicating that party leaders are aware of the low young voter turnout problem, but do not have stable solutions at their disposal.

Another study focusing on young minority voters tested the effect of campaign advertisements on voter sentiment towards the candidate. The advertisements had little effect on the sentiments of the young minority voters and the study concluded that the most influential factor regarding young minority voters and their political behavior was interpersonal communication. Interpersonal communication is the sharing of information between two or more people when they are face to face. Focusing on meaningful interactions and personal relationships proves to be a more effective strategy, instead of traditional political advertisements, for political campaigns hoping to target young minority voters.

Bibliography Info


 * McDonald, J., & Hanmer, M. (2019). Understanding and Confronting Barriers to Youth Voting in America.
 * Jasperson, A. E., & Yun, H. J. (2007). Political advertising effects and America's racially diverse newest voting generation. American Behavioral Scientist, 50(9), 1112-1123.
 * Fitzgerald, M. (2003). Easier voting methods boost youth turnout. The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE)(Feb. 2003), http://www . civicyouth. org/PopUps/WorkingPapers/WP01Fitzgerald. pdf.
 * Shea, D. M., & Green, J. C. (Eds.). (2007). Fountain of youth: strategies and tactics for mobilizing America's young voters. Rowman & Littlefield.