1. Voter Apathy Among Millennials
Kailey Kumm
University of Nebraska – Lincoln
March 10, 2016

2. 1
Apathy is defined as a ‘lack of emotion’ or ‘lack of interest; unconcern, indifference
(Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 2014, pp. 65). A millennial is defined as anyone
born between the years 1982 and 1999 (Twenge et al. 2012, pp. 1047). What do these two
entities have in common? More and more research alludes to the existence of an increasingly
apathetic mindset among millennials, particularly in participation in elections via voting. Voting
is and has been lauded as a major civic duty all citizens should participate in, yet U.S. voter
turnout rates as a whole remain quite low, rates being particularly dismal in midterm elections.
No other group turns up less to the polls, however, than the group of the millennial. All research
thus far points to a continually declining voter turnout rate for millennials (with few exceptions),
and the reasons why vary according to different scholars and sources.
Low voter turnout rates for young Americans is nothing new. “In every presidential
election since 1964, young voters between the ages of 18 through 24 have consistently voted at
lower rates than all other age groups… (File 2014, P2).” What is concerning is the increasing
decline in voting among this block of voters, minus a few rare exceptions. Young voters in
America, or rather millennials, have moved towards less political engagement over time as is
indicated in Figure 1(see appendix). Why is voter turnout important anyway? “American
democracy, or for that matter any democracy, depends upon the consent of the governed for its
legitimacy. The broadest measure of that consent is the vote… but because voting is the lowest
common denominator political act [easiest to perform] citizens who don’t vote are unlikely to
participate in any other form of sustaining political or civic activity—measuring voting also, to
some extent, measures civic health (Gans and Mulling 2011, P1).” Voter turnout is oftentimes
measured and taken in as an indicator of civic health. Taking data trends and information from

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the past to present, it is easy to question the civic health of this country, in particular the
participation of youths.
An explanation for the sharp drop that can be seen in the 1970s is likely the installment of
the 26th
amendment, allowing all citizens ages 18 and up to vote, thus increasing the amount of
young people that can vote. Increasing the voting-eligible population does not necessarily
increase the amount of people that cast ballots. Following the post-26th
Amendment drop is a
continued waning trend in turnout among millennials, excluding a few exceptions in which there
was increased engagement. These exceptions are namely the 1992, 2004, and 2008 presidential
elections.
There are five ‘eras’ in voter turnout as defined by Gans and Mulling, and very last era
being from 1964 to now:
1964 – the present, a period of progressive and generational decline in
turnout (except for the high turnout elections of 2004 and 2008 and
increased voting in the South and among citizens older than seventy-five
years of age), despite changes in society, political competition, and
electoral law which should, theoretically, have produced higher levels of
voting (pp. 2).
Post-1964 electoral laws have changed significantly, allowing those under 21 to vote and
expanding availability of absentee ballots. One could infer from this information alone that
turnout rates would increase rather than decrease. This is not the case. It is important to note
while discussing voter turnout rate that the eligible population for voting varies dramatically
from the actual voting population. The eligible population pertains specifically to all United
States citizens 18 years of age or older (excluding felons and other longstanding exclusions),
referred to as the voting-age population. The voting population pertains to the number of voting-
age citizens who actually report casting ballots. It logically follows that the voting population is
a much smaller entity than the eligible population. Therein lies the problem nationwide, and it is

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also important to point out that millennial voter turnout is only one piece of the puzzle. Using
the readily available resources and the advantage of living on a college campus, the most obvious
case study for me to analyze is the group of the millennial.
I conducted through 5 in-depth interviews. These interviews were with millennial
college students attending the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Prior to introducing in-depth my
hypotheses, it is important to define and differentiate the differences among millennials,
Generation X, and Baby Boomers. Doing so will enlighten readers of the basic differences
among these groups in regards to things such as extrinsic values (e.g. money, image, fame),
intrinsic values (e.g. self-acceptance, affiliation, community), concern for others (e.g. empathy
for outgroups, charity donations, the importance of having a job worthwhile to society), and civic
orientation (e.g. interest in social problems, political participation, trust in government, taking
action to help the environment and save energy’ (Twenge et al. 2012, pp. 1045). These
differences change greatly among what are called by scholars of the social sciences ‘birth
cohorts,’ or rather the colloquial ‘generations’ (Twenge et al. 2012, pp. 1045).
In 2012 Jean M. Twenge and Elise C. Freeman of San Diego State University along with
W. Keith Campbell conducted a research analysis on personality processes and individual
differences. This study differed from others, as it was one of the first to examine
“…generational trends in values, life goals, and young people’s relationships to their
communities (2012, pp. 1045).” Twenge et al. look for answers to questions such as “…have
young people’s life goals changed to become more or less community focused? How concerned
are they for others? How much do they wish to be involved in collective or civic action? (2012,
pp. 1045)”

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Several studies have emerged regarding political socialization, the reason being that
socialization dynamics are a lead in better understanding “…aggregate shifts in behavior or
opinion… (Stoker and Bass, 2015, pp. 453)” Twenge et al. study drew data from two large data
collection efforts that have surveyed young people over time, the MtF and the AF. The MtF, or
‘Monitoring the Future,’ has surveyed a nationally representative sample of high school seniors
every year since 1975, measuring students in cross-sections of the U.S. population including
race, region, gender, and socioeconomic status. The sample each year consists of approximately
15,000 high school seniors, typically 17 or 18 years old. The Twenge et al. study used data from
1976 to 2008. The AF, or American Freshman project, is part of the Cooperative Institutional
Research Program (CIRP) and is administered by the Higher Education Research Institute
(HERI), and has surveyed nationwide a sample of first-year students at 4-year universities or
colleges. The sample size is 1,201 college campuses, with over eight million students annually.
Other data used for studying life goals of millennials include a study of 182 undergraduates at
San Diego State University, with an average age of 21.35 years (Twenge et al. 2012, pp. 1047-
1048).
The results of the data analysis performed by Twenge et al. reveal the following:
Millenials and GenXers rated being very well off financially, being a leader,
living close to parents and relatives, and having administrative responsibility for
the work of others as more important than Boomers did at the same age. They
rated developing a meaningful philosophy of life, finding purpose and meaning,
keeping up to date with political affairs, and becoming involved in programs to
clean up the environment as less important. (pp. 1050)
These distinctions and comparative data reveal changes among intrinsic and extrinsic
goals and individualistic personality traits. The life goals related to intrinsic values were lower
among Millennials compared to Boomers and GenXers at the same age in the past. Making a
contribution to society declined from Boomers to GenX, and the importance of money rose

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between Boomers and GenX. Overall trends in life goals between Boomers and Millennials is
toward “…less community feeling, including less intrinsic, more extrinsic, and more narcissistic
goals, with Millennials continuing the trends begun by GenX and not reversing them (Twenge et
al. 2012, pp. 1053).” This data feeds in the ‘Generation Me’ view in which Millennials
contribute less to society and civic values than their predecessors, these predecessors being
GenX and Baby Boomers.
Political socialization certainly plays a role in likelihood of an individual to cast a ballot.
The most impressionable years of a person lie in early adulthood, approximately the late teens to
the mid- or late twenties. Early adulthood “…provides individuals with their first opportunity to
embrace their citizenship through voting; whether they actually turn out or not in those early
years sets down patterns or habits that tend to be followed later in life (Stoker and Bass, 2015,
pp. 456).
The next study measured civic engagement and social capital. This included an analysis
of community feeling in order to examine civic engagement, what Twenge et al. deem to be “…a
crucial part of social capital and a functioning democracy (pp. 1055).” The results of this study
“…primarily support the “Generation Me” view and are consistent with previous research
finding increases in individualistic traits and declines in civic engagement over time (pp. 1058).”
It is possible that items such as “being very well off financially” and those similar may have
increased as a result of the rising cost of college and housing, and the economic recession as
well, and this may offer an alternative explanation for millennials’ results in these surveys.
Overall, however, it is clear from the data that Millennials “…are less politically engaged than
Boomers and GenX were at the same age (pp. 1059).”

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An issue to consider in voter turnout is the possibility that millennials do not have the
resources and/or knowledge to get their vote in (i.e. absentee ballots, voter registration law
limitations, etcetera), and this is perhaps the problem with the most viability of getting fixed. A
1986 article detailing voter turnout among all Americans states: “The American institutional
setting—particularly the party system and the registration laws—severely inhibits voter
turnout… (Powell 1986, pp. 17)” Why is a 1986 review of American voter turnout still relevant
today? It is relevant because the same argument for low voter turnout is still used today, as is
evidenced by the existence of multiple groups with combined efforts to quash voter registration
restrictions and, according to the New York University School of Law’s Brennan Center for
Justice’s mission statement, “…work to ensure that voting is free, fair, and accessible to all
Americans (Voting Rights & Elections | Brennan Center for Justice, 2015).” The American
Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) launched in 2013 a project titled ‘Let People Vote,’ through
which they argue that:
States across the country are passing measures that make it harder and harder for
Americans – particularly African-Americans, the elderly, students and people
with disabilities – to exercise their fundamental right to cast a ballot (my
emphasis). These measures include requiring a government-issued photo ID to
vote and proof of citizenship to register, cutting back on early voting, eliminating
Election Day registration, new restrictions on voter registration drives and
additional barriers to voting for people with criminal convictions.
(Let People Vote | ACLU, 2013.)
Millennials have largely transitive lifestyles in comparison to other older generations, as
have other generations when they were the same age as millennials are now. Many young
people live away from home and must get absentee ballots or find other ways of voting.
Absentee ballots, although attainable, require prior thought to voting. In Nebraska absentee
ballots must be requested about a month before the actual Election Day. For example: In 2015
the General Election to be held on November 27th
required absentee voters to input a request

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prior to 4 p.m. on October 27th
in the state of Nebraska (Absentee Voting | Nebraska.gov, Office
of the Secretary of State, 2015). These cutoff dates for access to absentee ballots creates an issue
for many millennials, the issue being that, as millennials are generally not attuned to the political
sphere and more and more do not tune into traditional news channels, millennials may simply
forget to turn in an absentee ballot request until the time to do so has expired and that millennial
is then unable to cast a vote.
Political campaigns clearly ‘campaign’ for citizens to cast ballots in their favor, and are
favorable of ‘Get Out The Vote’ campaigns. They are “…increasingly seen as political events
that shape – or at least have the potential to shape – political preferences in a host of ways.
Negative campaign ads, for example (of which there are twice as many as positive ads), puts a
spin on political candidates and, whether the ads are fair or not, could subconsciously have an
effect on votes or lack of votes (Wayne et al., 2014, pp. 126). Interest groups and PACs
(Political Action Committees) as well as increasing numbers of ‘SuperPACs’ expend incredible
amounts of time and money in political campaigns. In 2012 Obama’s campaign totaled
$1,107,029,174 including candidate, national party, and outside spending. Romney’s campaign
topped Obama’s: including candidate, national party, and outside spending the money spent of
the Romney 2012 campaign totaled $1,238,072,571 (Flanigan et al, 2014, pp. 16). A college
student eating Ramen noodles for dinner would see these numbers as obscene, potentially
increasing dissatisfaction with campaign spending and campaign and electoral politics itself.
Perhaps young people are less motivated to turn up at the polls as a result of these things. This is
a question I hope to answer in my research, identifying what effects these campaign strategies
really have on voter turnout.

9. 8
2008 and 2012 saw upticks in voter turnout among youth – 2008 saw a 42% turnout rate
and 2012 saw a 38% turnout rate among those ages 18-29 (File 2014, pp. 14). These were
significant increases in comparison to the 1996 and 2000 rates of 32% [see Figure 1.1]. Some
scholars and pundits argue that low turnout in the past and now can be attributed to a disconnect
between young voters and candidates, however many candidates have tried to close the gap and
have found relative success, as can be seen by Barack Obama’s 2008 victory and the highest 18-
29 year-old turnout rate since 1964 (File 2014, pp. 14).
A 1978 Wolfinger and Rosenstone work, spurring further research and acting as a
benchmark for future studies as well, outlines the cons of absentee voting in the following
excerpt (keep in mind, this was 1978):
Absentee registration. The 1970 VRAA [Voting Rights Amendment Act]
required all states to permit absentee registration in presidential elections solely
on grounds of absence. This is a minimum standard. Some states permit absentee
registration for various other reasons, and a few authorize it for anyone. Federal
postcard registration would authorize nationwide absentee registration. A major
issue in congressional debate has been whether postcards should be mailed to
everyone, or whether the individual would have to obtain a postcard to mail in.
(Rosenstone and Wolfinger, 1978, pp. 24).
Although the United States government generally no longer employs the use of postcards
in registering to vote or requesting an absentee ballot, as the internet is a far more viable option,
it is clear that the question of “…whether the individual would have to obtain a postcard to mail
in (Rosenstone and Wolfinger, 1978, pp. 24)” is answered in that it is the responsibility of the
individual to attain and request what is necessary in order to cast a ballot in an election.
“Voter registration in the United States is an individual opt-in responsibility, rather than
an automatic process as in most of Europe (Sniderman 2011, pp. 313).” It is this nuance, the
responsibility to vote being placed in the hands of the individual, which arguably creates the
large gap in turnout between those ages 18 to 29 years and other age groups, as well as low

10. 9
turnout among all Americans. For my purposes, I will focus on millennials like myself. I
graduated from a small Nebraska town in a class of 57. Of these 57, over 80% left for college,
trade-school, the military, etcetera, and thus the grand majority of those I graduated high school
with, all millennials, would have had to request absentee ballots and do so with forethought prior
to the actual Election Day. This is a small-scale example. A Nebraska town with a population of
3,000 is simply a tiny case study, and yet the point made through said case study is clear: youths
leave, absentee ballots are the only viable way to vote for many of them, and absentee ballot
voting requires a designated date at which an individual must request an absentee ballot prior to
an election.
Taking these things into consideration, Rosenstone and Wolfinger seemed to have a pulse
on the American youth vote even in 1978. Rosenstone and Wolfinger identified that a 9.1
percentage point increase in voting would occur if the following adaptations and reforms were
made:
● eliminating the closing date;
● opening registration offices during the 40-hour work week;
● opening registration offices in the evening and/or on Saturday;
● permitting absentee registration for the sick, disabled, and absent.
(Rosenstone and Wolfinger 1978, pp. 33)
All fifty states have permitted absentee registration “for the sick, disable, and absent” since 1978,
but what hasn’t changed is the fact that voter turnout among youths ages 18-29 remain dismally
low, having lowered in a downward trend minus a few spikes in specific presidential elections.
The simple truth about Americans ages 18-29 is that they have a lower turnout rate than
any other age group. This has been true for decades. Despite ‘Get Out The Vote’ efforts seen on
nearly every college campus every election season, and despite changes such as motor voter ID
registration (registering to vote at the time one attains their drivers license), voter turnout

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remains low. Absentee voting not only requires a month of forethought, it also requires that
those eligible to request absentee ballots have the knowledge and resources to do so. If it is
largely unknown or simply ignored how an individual goes about getting an absentee ballot, said
individual may be unlikely to pursue it. Increased education and knowledge about how to
request an absentee ballot could potentially assist in closing the large gap between youths and
other age groups in voter turnout. Regardless of the powers of Google and simply searching how
to apply for an absentee ballot, students/youths in general lacking a vested interest in an election
seem to be unlikely to pursue such actions.
There is a lack of a vested interest in political participation and, in extension, voting,
leads us to the possibility that millennials do not see voting as an effective tool for instigating
change. A study measuring civic attitudes and involvement in 1996 and 2000 (presidential
election years), conducted by Anne Blackhurst and Joshua Foster, showed “…moderate and
decreasing levels of cynicism and apathy… and significant relationships between civic attitudes,
service participation, and political participation (Blackhurst and Foster 2003, pp. 153) The
‘Generation Me’ label started in the 1980s with the GenX’ers, and seems to have gone on to
include Millennials as well.
A focus group study performed with college students across 12 four-year universities
conducted in 2006 and 2007 by CIRCLE, the Center for Information & Research on Civic
Learning & Engagement, found that “Students perceive politics as it currently exists, as a
polarized debate with no options for compromise or nuance…The problem is not lack of
information but an overload of news and opinions that they do not trust. Students are especially
distrustful of information that comes with a partisan bent… (Millennials Talk Politics: A Study of
College Student Political Engagement, 2009, pp. 1-2).”

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Republicans and Democrats have become further divided along ideological lines, or
rather become more polarized, now more than any other point in the past two decades. Partisan
antipathy is “deeper and more extensive” than ever, and it can be seen in Figure 1.2 that the
divide between Democrats and Republicans has drifted further and further since 1994 (Pew,
2014, pp. 1). Furthermore, “…92% of Republicans are to the right of the median Democrat and
94% of Democrats are to the left of the median democrat. ‘Median’ means ‘moderate’ here, and
it is clear from this data that moderate Republicans and moderate Democrats are lesser entities
than they once were (Pew, 2014, pp. 2).
Figure 1.3 showed a chronological ideological split, percentages of moving further right
or left on the spectrum increasing across the board from 1994 to 2012. Mutual contempt for the
other party is also a palpable increasing force in the American polity. As is visible in Figure 1.5,
Democrats held a 16% ‘very unfavorable’ view towards Republicans in 1994 and a 38% ‘very
unfavorable view’ in 2012. Republicans held a 17% ‘very unfavorable’ view towards Democrats
in 1994 and in 2012 held a 43% ‘very unfavorable’ view (Pew, 2014, pp. 1). This antipathy and
mutual contempt has arguably led to further decreased confidence in our government branches,
with the Congressional confidence level currently at 7% and a Congressional approval rating of
14%, up from 9% in 2014 [see Figure 1.4] (Gallup, 2015). This polarization and palpable
contempt that exists in the American political atmosphere, in governmental branches and among
everyday citizens, could be a link in the low voter turnout question.
The Blackhurst and Foster study, unlike others, did not paint Millennials as members of
another ‘me’ generation, but rather a generation that is distrusting of the current state of politics
and the actors within. Do apathy and cynicism belong in the same group as ‘distrustful?’
Perhaps they do and perhaps they do not depending upon the issue. Blackhurst and Foster found

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that although “…the 1990s represented a decade of increasing cynicism and continuing political
disengagement… college students were involved in community service in record numbers…”
and that “While they may have been pragmatic about their ability to effect change and their
orientation to activism, they appeared committed to making a difference in their communities
(Blackhurst and Foster 2003, pp. 155).”
Although the study performed by Blackhurst and Foster was in the 1990s, the results they
found are similar to studies performed more recently. Volunteering seems to have become a
complement to politics starting at some point in the 1990s, perhaps because “…they view the
political system as inefficient and inaccessible, [and so] they turn to volunteering (College
Student Political Engagement, 2009, pp. 9-10).” Perhaps Millennials aren’t as apathetic and
self-involved as the ‘Generation Me’ label seems to make them. Perhaps Millennials have
simply changed their priorities. As summarized by sociologists Stoker and Bass:
It is easy to draw these developments together into a bleak portrayal of the
character of the youngest generations – as populated by politically disengaged,
disinterested, self-centered cynics – and, given population replacement dynamics,
into a bleak outlook for the nation’s future. But the youngest cohorts are also
different from older cohorts in a number of more salutary ways. They are at least
as likely more even more likely to engage in volunteer work…New cohorts of
college freshman are more likely than older cohorts to cite ‘becoming a
community leader’ as very important and to express an intent to participate in
public service (Stoker and Bass, 2015, pp. 459) .”
Political Scientist Michael J. Avey states: “…nonvoters are much less informed about
political matters than voters…” and hypothesizes that “Such a lack of interest is substantially a
function of stimulation. The more stimulation people receive, the more likely they will
participate… Apathy, then, has a circular relationship with information. People do not listen
because they are not being addressed… (Avey 1989, pp. 23).” Millennials are not direct targets
of election cycles, and, even though young people are a huge block of the American population,
candidates for office sometimes have trouble connecting with them based on generational

14. 13
differences in views. Despite the recent grassroots campaigns and organizations like Rock The
Vote, youths still don’t vote in the numbers they should be. Furthermore, it has been shown that
millennials find politics of today frustrating and stunted and many wish to have nothing to do
with it. Because of this I hypothesize that Millennials do not feel they have a vested interest in
voting, as voting feeds into the political system Millennials are shown to be distrustful of.
Polarization in the American electorate and a stunted, slow, uncooperative bipartisan Congress
are common complaints of many Americans. Perhaps millennials see these political frustrations
and decide to pursue causes outside of the political field, such as volunteer work.
This is likely a factor in the low voter turnout of the past three decades, and I believe that
increased cynicism and lack of trust in the American political system has led Millennials to lose
their vested interests in voting, as they don’t view it as an effective tool for instigating change.
This lack of interest paired with the processes of voting are highly likely causes for low voter
turnout among Millennials. To further investigate my hypotheses I conducted 5 interviews with
millennial college students. I found students who have been eligible to vote for a few years, all
interviewees being either 20 or 21 years of age. Interviews ranged from 14 to 20 minutes, some
interviewees being more chatty than others. I attempted to get a variety of majors in this study,
wanting interviewees with varying levels of interest in government. I interviewed a Sociology
major, a Mechanical Engineering major, a Sports Broadcasting/ADPR major, a triple English,
Spanish, and Political Science major, and finally a grad student furthering his studies in German.
Two of these students were from Lincoln, one from Omaha, and two from Sioux Falls, South
Dakota and Yankton, South Dakota, respectively. I recruited these students from various classes
I have had in the past two semesters, all of them being acquaintances of mine I knew would
consent to an anonymous interview. All students interviewed were middle-class and Caucasian.

15. 14
Four interviewees were male and one was female. Two were Republicans and three were
Democrats. While the interviewees I was able to collect for this study are not as diverse as I had
wanted, I still discovered that many of my hunches about voting behavior among youths were
correct, and that furthermore there were several factors I had not considered. These interviews
will give insight to the issues in the minds of Millennials while also identifying differences
between older age groups and Millennials. My hypotheses following my review of the literature
of voter turnout research are as follows:
1. Millennials do not see voting as an effective tool for instigating change.
2. Millennials do not have the resources and/or knowledge to get their vote in (i.e.
absentee ballots, voter registration law limitations, etcetera).
3. Millennials are not attuned to the political sphere, and thus do not feel informed
enough/do not care enough to vote.
These interviews addressed these hypotheses and identified the main question of this
paper: why don’t young people vote? Is it a registration/absentee ballot issue? Is it an issue with
lack of government trust, or perhaps increased cynicism about government? Questions like this
will give insight to one of the bigger political issues in American politics; that issue being low
political participation among Americans nationwide, in particular young people.
The Interviews
In-depth guided interviews revealed to me that my three hypotheses were all true, but that
oftentimes the reasons individuals do and do not vote involve a combination of reasons, some of
which had not occurred to me. Three of five interviewees cited voting as a civic duty, and had
voted in most or all elections. The other two interviewees had never voted, for varying reasons.
Interviewees who did vote cited the following reasons:

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• They see voting as a civic duty.
• They believe to an extent that political elections and their outcomes are significant.
• They feel informed enough to vote.
Interviewees who have not voted cited the following reasons:
• They feel that voting is an inconvenience.
• They believe their vote has little or no impact.
• They think that our government is inefficient and flawed.
Interestingly those who had voted in all or most elections said they voted in spite of the
reasons for which interviewees who had not voted cited. There is no way to definitively say
why millennials do or not vote as the reasons for which they do or do not are entangled and
mixed together. Interviewee 5, when asked, “Do you think your vote matters?” responded
with a resounding “No.” 5 is a registered Democrat in a very red state, South Dakota, and
this is why he feels his vote has little to no impact. Yet he votes anyway. Several people
suggested that their vote had little impact.
Interviewee 1 is from Lincoln, Nebraska, and while he has easy access to voting, he does
not vote. He said he hadn’t voted in the past because “…it’s a mild inconvenience, and
partially it’s because I just don’t really think that my vote has much significance,” mirroring
other interviewees who questioned the impact of their vote. The ‘mild inconvenience’ he was
referring to is driving to the voting location and voting, which he said took too large a chunk
out of his day. He said he might consider voting in the future, but he expressed
dissatisfaction with the state of things, saying “[I] think politics are inherently kind of
skewed and self-serving to a certain extent…” and he went on to complain of lack of
transparency in government (which Interviewee 3 expressed concern over as well).

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Lack of transparency and trust at the federal level of government was a common theme
among these interviewees. Interviewee 2 from Lincoln, Nebraska has voted in every
election, and, contrary to other interviewees, feels that his vote has an impact. He clarifies
that this impact lies primarily with local and state elections, discounting his vote for national
elections, stating: “I don’t think that Congress people or executive branch people have my
best interests in mind.” 2’s thoughts on national-level politics mirror that of other
interviewees’ thoughts. Interviewee 3 stated that she “feel[s] very disconnected from it
[government],” describing the system as “intangible” and inaccessible to outsiders.
Interviewee 3, 20 years old, has never voted in an election, telling me she was too young.
She then remembered the 2014 Midterm Elections and that she could have voted in them, but
she simply hadn’t thought about it. Interviewee 4 had voted in all but one election, in which
he simply forgot to get a ballot. Examples like this feed into my hypothesis about millennials
simply being unaware of when elections are and what they need to do to vote.
Interviewee 4, a 22 year old from Omaha, had concerns over the growing role of money
in elections, stating that he would see more good in government if those in government roles
“see it more as a service to the community rather than a job.” Interviewee 4, in addition to 2
and 5 saw being informed as an important part of voting. Interviewee 2 even went so far as
saying, when asked about if all eligible voters should vote, that they should vote “If they’re
informed, yes. If they don’t know anything, then no. Voting is a civic duty, a lot of people
seem to forget that.” Interviewee 2 implies that voting is a civic duty, but to vote one should
be informed. Is being informed a civic duty as well? Interviewees 2, 4, and 5 would say that
it was.

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Questions concerning accessibility in voting brought answers I did not expect.
Interviewees 2, 4, and 5 said the process was pretty simple. “You sign up, you vote.” said 4.
4 is from Omaha, and he stated that he drives 40 minutes to get to his polling place. 2 is
from Lincoln and drives to his designated polling place across town. 5 is from Yankton,
South Dakota, and while he stated that it is more of a hassle to get a ballot than he would
like, he doesn’t see it as too big of an inconvenience. Interviewees 1 and 3 cited voting as an
inconvenience, 1 citing it as not worth his time and 3 citing the lack of information she knew
about voting, particularly via absentee ballot as she would as an out-of-state student.
Below, repeated again, are the three hypotheses I put forth.
1. Millennials do not see voting as an effective tool for instigating change.
2. Millennials do not have the resources and/or knowledge to get their vote in (i.e.
absentee ballots, voter registration law limitations, etcetera).
3. Millennials are not attuned to the political sphere, and thus do not feel informed
enough/do not care enough to vote.
All of these hypotheses are true to an extent depending upon which interviewee is being
discussed. Location played a large role in how an individual perceived the voting process,
location being the determinant for how he or she would vote. An individual’s outlook on politics
played a role in voting behavior, but a more complicated role. All interviewees expressed
dissatisfaction at the federal government, multiple citing polarization and gridlock, and yet three
of these interviewees voted in spite of that. Partisanship played a small role as well, highlighted
in Interview 5, interviewee being a registered Democrat in red South Dakota who felt that his
vote did not matter, but voted anyways because he feels it his civic duty. Access to ballots
played a more muted role than I thought it would originally, a majority of those interviewed
saying that obtaining a ballot was easy enough. Interviewees 3 and 5, however, said they had or

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could easily ‘space’ an election, simply forgetting to vote. Interviewees #2 and #4 both admitted
to forgetting to vote in an election, the election simply slipping their mind. Parental socialization
may have played a role, interviewees 2, 4, and 5 all reported that their parents voted and that
politics and voting was discussed in their homes as well.
Summary
There are a myriad of reasons individuals do and do not vote, particularly among
millennials. Perhaps the biggest issue I saw throughout this study was that young voters simply
do not always pay attention, and voting had simply slipped their minds as a result of their
transient, hectic lifestyles. Interviewee 1, however, did not vote not for lack of knowledge but
for lack of interest. In sum, voter apathy seems to be alive and well among millennials. I would
like to amend the term ‘voter apathy’ as a result of this study, however. Perhaps all millennials
have a slight case of ‘voter apathy,’ voting or not voting with a grain of salt. Each person I
interviewed, in addition to the literature I read, points to a growing contempt people have for our
government. Lack of trust in our government is a common thread throughout all interviews I
conducted. Therefore the glaring solution seems to be fixing the top complaint of these
interviewers: the inefficiency and lack of transparency in our government. Is this a solvable
solution? The 2016 election may provide some insight to how and, more relevant, if, such as
solution exists.
The 2016 election includes a variety of candidates vying for the youth vote. With
promises of free college and a $15 minimum wage by candidates the interest of youths has been
piqued. The latest Census estimated that there are now 83.1 million millennials in the U.S.,
millennials now outnumbering Baby Boomers (Khalid, 2016). Do young people matter in
politics? This is the question that comes up every election cycle. The 2016 election will either

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serve to show a change in voting behavior for young voters or further strengthen the long-held
notion that young people do not vote.
My study had limitations in that I had only 5 test subjects. Were I to conduct further
research I would seek a larger sample size, perhaps using a series of focus groups or simply one-
on-one interviews. I would expand my questions and possibly additionally include an
anonymous survey through which I could get a greater range of responses from an even larger
sample of students. With further studies I would incorporate more methods of surveying, and
most importantly I would survey more students. With a larger sample size and expanded survey
methods, clearer and more specific reasons and issues with millennials and voting could be
pinpointed.

21. 20
Appendix
Figure 1.1

22. 21
Figure 1.2
Figure 1.3

23. 22
Figure 1.4

24. 23
Works Cited
Avey, M. J. (1989) The Demobilization of American Voters: A Comprehensive Theory of Voter
Turnout. New York: Greenwood Press.
Blackhurst, A. E. and Foster, J. (2003) ‘College Students and Citizenship: A Comparison of
Civic Attitudes and Involvement in 1966 and 2000,” NASPA Journal, 40, pp. 153-174
Congress and the Public. [Gallup] (2015). Retrieved September 13, 2015
Editors of Webster’s New World College Dictionary (2014) Webster’s New World College
Dictionary, Fifth Edition. United States: Houghton-Mifflin
Flanigan, W. G., Theiss-Morse, E. A. Zingale, N. G., Thomas, S. and Wagner, M. W. (2014)
Political Behavior of the American Electorate. 13th ed. United States: CQ Press
Khalid, A. (2016) The 10 states where Millennials could sway the election. Available at:
http://www.npr.org/2016/02/24/462948346/the-10-states-where-millennials-could-sway-the-
election (Accessed: 26 February 2016).
Let People Vote. ACLU. 2013.
Available at: www.aclu.org/map/batt-protect-ballot-voter-suppression-measures-passed-2013
(Accessed 26 May 2015)
Millennials Talk Politics: A Study of College Student Political Engagement (2009) retrieved
from civicyouth.org. (Accessed 2 June 2015)
Nagler, J. (1991) ‘The Effect of Registration Laws and Education of Registration Laws on Voter
Turnout.’ The American Political Science Review, 80(1). pp. 17-43
Public Faith in Congress Fall Again, Hits Historic Low. [Gallup] (2014, June 19). Retrieved
September 13, 2015
Rosenstone, J. J. and Wolfinger, R. E. (1978) ‘The Effect of Registration Laws on Voter
Turnout.’ The American Political Science Review, 72(1) pp. 22-45
Sniderman, P. M. (2011) Facing the Challenge of Democracy: Exploration in the Analysis of
Public Opinion and Political Participation. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Stoker, L. and Bass, J. (2015) ‘Political Socialization: Ongoing Questions and New Directions.’
The Oxford Handbook of American Public Opinion and the Media. pp. 453-470
Thom, F. (2014) Young-Adult Voting: An Analysis of Presidential Elections, 1964-2012
Twenge, J. M. PhD (2006) Generation Me: Why Today’s Young Americans Are More Confident,
Assertive, and Entitled - And More Miserable Than Ever. New York: Simon & Schuster

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Twenge, J. M., Campbell, K.. W. and Freeman, E. C. (2012) ‘Generational Differences in Young
Adults’ Life Goals, Concern for Others, and Civic Orientation, 1966-2009.’ Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology. 102(5), pp. 1045-1062
Voting Rights and Elections | Brennan Center for Justice.
Retrieved from: https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/voting-rights-elections
(Accessed 2 June 2015)
Winogard, M. (2011) Millennial Momentum: How a New Generation is Remaking America. New
Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press

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Interview Transcripts:
Interviewee #1
What is your age, year in college, major, and hometown?
I’m 21, a senior in college, I’m a Mechanical engineering major, and I’m from Lincoln
[Nebraska].
Have you ever voted, or do you intend to vote, in a political election?
I haven’t voted, but I suppose at some point I will.
If you did vote would you vote from home or get an absentee ballot?
It depends where I’m at. If I’m still in Lincoln, I’ll vote in person. If I’m not, I suppose I would
get an absentee ballot.
Do you know how to go about getting an absentee ballot?
I could Google it, but off the top of my head, no.
Are you satisfied with the process by which you are able to vote?
Seems simple enough, I mean, being young, I guess it would be better if it was, like, online, or
something like that instead of having to go somewhere.
You haven’t voted in the past, why not?
Partially it’s been just because it’s a mild inconvenience, and partially it’s because I just don’t
really think that my vote has much significance, and also I have sort of aligned with the parties
and candidates that are polling well, so I figure they’re probably just going to win anyway
whether I vote or not.
Do you feel your vote has an impact on the outcome of an election?
Um, to a certain extent, yeah, if I was voting for a candidate that I didn’t think was going to win
anyway. It’d definitely be worth a shot, that’s a valuable part of the process, but I think the
bigger part of the issue is I don’t care which candidate it is unless, like, the other candidate is a
crazy person and would have a negative affect.

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What importance do you place on political elections and their outcomes?
Relatively little, if I had to give a rating it might be a three out of ten, or something like that.
Do you feel candidates have your best interests in mind?
No. I just think politics are inherently kind of skewed and self-serving to a certain extent, um…
Track records of most people have shown that the interests expressed in the election process and
campaigns have been pretty different than people they’re representing and what the general
consensus is.
Do you see effectiveness in our political system?
No, probably not.
What are the biggest flaws you see?
Well I just think the, the way things are structured, it’s very difficult to incite actual change.
Checks and balances are good, but past a certain point they just stop progress and I also just
think that the amount of transparency is pretty bad. There are so many things in the government
that I just don’t understand.
As a millennial, what problems do you face that you think could be attributed to a government
factor?
Well, I have to pay into social security and Medicare, and I’m never going to see a dime of that
money so that, that kinda sucks. At a more local level, college is unreasonably expensive for,
like, a country that is supposed to value education to the degree it does. Why is it so hard to get
an education? I don’t get that.
Do you see your elected representatives addressing these concerns?
Not really, no.
If they did, would you be more inclined to vote?
Yeah, sure.
In what ways do you participate in government?

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I mean, aside from paying my taxes, that’s the main one, I do stay up to date on issues pretty
well.
What would most encourage you to vote?
Well, I think, getting rid of the current voting system would be pretty big, if we had the resources
to actually count everybody’s votes—it’s pretty weird in a democratic system to have the person
with the most votes not always win, that’s strange. So that’s one thing. Like I said, if I favored a
candidate that wasn’t the consensus favorite and not losing horribly at the polls, I wouldn’t feel
like I would be wasting my vote. And then just like, I think the state of the Senate and the House
at the time matters too, because, if you get a House that doesn’t agree with the president you just
won’t get anything done, and it’s a waste of four years.
Do your parents vote? Have they talked about voting to you?
My parents vote, yes. They don’t talk about it though; they just kind of do it.
What is the main reason you have not voted in the past?
It’s an inconvenience, I suppose. The level of reward you get for your effort is pretty small, so I
don’t know.
Interviewee #2
What is your age, year in college, major, and hometown?
I am a 21yrold senior double majoring in Advertising and Public Relations, I am from Lincoln,
Nebraska.
Have you ever voted or do you intend to vote in a political election?
I have voted.
Do you vote from home or do you get an absentee ballot?
I vote from home.
Is it easy for you to vote?
Yeah, it’s pretty easy.

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Are you satisfied with the process by which you are able to vote?
Yes.
Have you voted in every election?
Uh, I think every one except for maybe one- I think I missed a midterm primary.
Do you feel your vote has an impact on an election?
Yeah, especially local races.
What importance do you place on political elections and their outcomes?
I place pretty good importance on it. Our leaders do make decisions that impact us, so putting
the right people in those positions is important.
Do you feel your current elected officials have your interests in mind?
I’d say more so on a local level than nationally – I don’t think that Congress people or executive
branch people have my best interests in mind. I think people in a city government situation, or a
county, or sometimes in a state legislature they are way more concerned about my interests.
Do you see effectiveness in our political system?
Yes.
Do you see any flaws, and if so, what are they?
Yeah, there are flaws. The extreme partisan nature of politics today is a pretty big flaw, and how
the polarization we have makes it difficult to do things, but they cause the problems themselves,
so, I’d say polarization is the biggest flaw right now.
In which ways do you participate in government?
Me personally? I vote, I engage with younger voters in discussion on topics, uh, I have
volunteered in the past for a political campaign.
Have you ever helped in a political campaign?
Yes.

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Did you find it to be worthwhile?
Yes- depending on what I was doing. The stuff I did for Rob Schaffer for the region made a
difference, I think. It was nuts, but- the phone calls that I did for the Nebraska GOP, that didn’t
make a difference, no.
Do you see voting as a civic duty?
Yeah. Well, I mean, to an extent, yeah.
As in, something everyone is eligible should do?
If they’re informed, yes. If they don’t know anything, then no. Voting a civic duty, a lot of
people seem to forget that.
Do your parents vote? Have they discussed it with you?
My parents vote, yes. They also see it as a civic duty.
Interviewee #3
What is your age, year in college, major, and hometown?
I’m 20, History and sociology major, a junior, and I am from Sioux Falls, SD.
Have you ever voted, or do you intend to vote, in a political election?
I have never voted, but I do intend to.
Would you vote from home or would you get an absentee ballot?
Absentee ballot.
Do you know how to get an absentee ballot?
No.
Do you think you would remember to request an absentee ballot if you decided to vote?
I don’t know. I have a lot of other stuff going on, I could easily forget to do it.

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Are you satisfied with the process by which you are able to vote?
No.
What would you change?
If it was online, that would be easy. I’ve also heard making election day a national holiday
where people get off work, um, granted not everyone would get off work, but that would help.
Online would be great, convenient. Just making it overall more accessible to the everyday
person.
You haven’t voted in the past, why not?
I was too young to vote in the last presidential election. I guess, now that I think about it, I could
have voted in the midterm election, but I didn’t really think about it at the time. I, uh.. I just
didn’t think about it, honestly. And not many people talk about those [midterm] elections, so I
feel like you don’t hear as much about it as presidential elections.
Do your parents vote? Do they discuss voting or political things?
I don’t know if my parents vote, I haven’t ever asked. We don’t really get into politics, no.
Do you feel your elected representatives have your best interests in mind?
Mine, personally—from South Dakota? No.
How would you define those flaws?
Well, I’ll be in debt for years after college, so, college debt, crazy interest rates, those aren’t
good.
As a millennial, what problems do you face that could be contributed to a governmental factor?
Um, college is overpriced, I don’t get a whole lot out of government, I just feel really far away
from it.
Do you see representative addressing these concerns?
I mean, all I can really think about is Bernie Sanders. Um, no.
If they did, would you be more inclined to vote?

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Yes, I suppose so.
What is the main reason you would vote?
Well, if I heard about things I care about I might, but I think a lot of the time, the language they
use is hard for me to care about, and, uh, it just feels really distant. I feel very disconnected from
it. Maybe, I don’t know, if they directly addressed younger people, um, I don’t know. The way,
the way they approach it is, makes the system seem intangible to me.
Interviewee #4
What is your age, year in college, major, and hometown?
I am 22, I’m a first-year graduate student seeking a Masters degree in German, and I am from
Omaha, Nebraska.
Have you ever voted or do you intend to vote in a political election?
Yes, I have.
Which elections and why?
2012, the presidential one, and I think I did a local one.
Midterm elections?
Yes, except for when I was abroad in Berlin for a semester—I spaced on that one.
Why do you vote?
Why… Well, we live in a quote-on-quote democracy and for that people have to vote, and by
voting you get the best candidate. So, if you don’t vote, you can’t complain.
Do you vote from home or do you get an absentee ballot?
I go home to vote, it’s a 40 minute drive
Do you find the current way you are able to vote time-consuming?
To vote, no, to prepare to vote, I guess so.

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Prepare to vote?
To be informed, to know about the candidates. The campaign season is stressful, but voting is
pretty easy. I just drive to Omaha, vote, and come back.
Are you satisfied with the process by which you are able to vote?
I think so. It’s pretty simple. You sign up, you vote.
Do your parents vote? Have they ever discussed politics and elections with you?
They vote, yes. And we discuss politics fairly regularly. My parents watch the nightly news and have for
who knows how long.
Do you feel your candidates have your best interests in mind?
Um, sometimes. Sometimes though, it really is false promises. After they are elected they can
do whatever they want.
Do you see effectiveness in the political system, at local, state, and federal levels?
I feel as though we have too much focus on federal, and local needs more. No one really gives
two shits about local elections. I don’t really see effectiveness unless you change it from the
bottom-up.
Do you feel as though your vote has an impact on an election?
I don’t feel like it but I know it does. Everyone says their vote doesn’t count, but if everyone
said that no one would go vote.
What flaws do you see in our government?
It all revolves around money. You can’t really – it’s hard, you can’t really promote yourself
without money, which requires sponsorships, and they may ask for favors later. I think money is
a big problem. It would be nice to see it more as a service to the community rather than a job.
Do you see partisanship as an issue, political polarization?
Yes. Because it is either yes or no, and most things are in the gray areas, and always decisions
lie with the extremes, because people feel they need to stay behind party lines.
As a millennial, someone 18-29, do you feel candidates address your concerns in elections?

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They’re starting too-ish. I know there’s always a big impact, or a big focus on millennials. Um,
do they address some concerns? Sometimes. It seems to be focused on the older generations,
which kinda sucks. I don’t see the point in that. They’re not going to be alive in thirty years.
These policies will be put in place, and then they’ll be dead by the time they can experience
them.
What encourages you to vote the most? What is the main reason?
Because we take this for granted and sometimes people don’t vote because they just take for
granted that we have this free society. If you don’t support your government then you’re not
helping and you’re not being a valued citizen, I guess. It’s just kind of adding your input, adding
what you’d like to see in future decisions.
Interviewee #5
What is your age, year in college, major, and hometown?
I am 21, a senior, and am triple majoring in English, Political Science, and Spanish. I am from
Yankton, South Dakota.
Have you ever voted or do you intend to vote in a political election?
I have voted, I and I will continue to vote. I voted in the 2012 presidential and midterm
elections. I did not vote in the 2014 midterm elections because I hadn’t lived there [in South
Dakota] and I didn’t feel very informed on the South Dakota political situation.
Do you vote from home or do you get an absentee ballot?
Neither. My mom brings me my ballot.
Do you know how to get an absentee ballot?
I’m sure I could figure it out. I could just google it.
Do you think you would remember ahead of the election to request an absentee ballot?
I think I could forget to do it pretty easily.
Why do you think that is?

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Living out of state I’m not really up to date on the deadlines and also I’m a college student. I
have a lot of other deadlines on my mind other than when I need to request an absentee ballot by.
Are you satisfied with the process by which you are able to vote?
As far as obtaining and receiving my ballot, no. As for filling it out, yes. At this point I’m pretty
good at filling out bubbles. It’s just getting the ballot in the first place that’s a pain in the ass.
Also, last time I got my ballot my mom brought it to me and my entire family watched me fill it
out which was really awkward and uncomfortable. I definitely didn’t have the comfort of a
voting booth.
Do your parents vote?
My mom votes. Like I said, she brings me my ballot. We discuss politics, partly because I’m a political
science major and that’s one of the areas I generally lean towards talking about. Voting just makes sense,
I don’t know why I wouldn’t at least try to turn in a ballot.
Do you think your vote matters?
No.
Why?
Especially being from South Dakota I’m a registered Democrat and South Dakota is a very red
state. Essentially my role in the electoral process doesn’t mean much. To put that in
perspective, the last Democrat to receive the electoral votes in South Dakota was LBJ, and his
opponent was George McGovern, who happens to come from South Dakota.
What, if any, is the impact you believe your vote has on local, state, and federal elections?
I feel that locally it does. School board, sheriff, those offices in Yankton [South Dakota]. As for
state and federal elections I don’t think my vote has an impact, no.
Do you feel your candidates and/or representatives have your best interests in mind?
No. Kristy Noem is our House representative, and John Thune and Tim Johnson are our Senate
representatives. Tim Johnson suffered a stroke in recent years so his performance in doing his
job has been difficult, to say the least. John Thune is a moderate conservative—I disagree with
him on social issues. Kristy Noem is a piece of work. She dropped out of, I think, four colleges
in South Dakota, has no degree, and she has some interesting viewpoints. So yeah, that’s how I
feel about them.

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Do you see effectiveness in our political system?
At the local level, yeah, but honestly the smaller you get the more control you have. As far as
state and federal government, no. Congress is a mess with political gridlock. I think it would be
effective when it works, but the way it is now when it gets bogged down, nothing is going to get
done.
What is the biggest issue you face that can be attributed, at least in part, to the government?
College is expensive, that’s the biggest thing in my life. I guess as I get older taxes and things
will play a role. College is the main thing. I’ll be paying a lot here at undergrad, and I’m going
to grad school. It’s terrifying to come out of school in that much debt. So I just hope I get a job.
Do you see our government addressing the issues you are concerned about?
No. In fact I’m not really informed about what they’re doing which might just be the problem,
as there is so little transparency. If they are addressing college debt I haven’t heard or seen
anything about it. If they were transparent it would help their constituents, but maybe it
wouldn’t help them. It all seems very self-serving at the federal level of government.
In which ways do you participate in government?
I vote when I am able and when I feel informed to do so. I’ve worked for the Capitol
[Nebraska], and also for the city of Omaha. I organized a calling campaign with other University
of Nebraska colleges to help get the Good Samaritan Bill pushed through.
What is the main reason you vote?
I’m a political science major—I feel as though it’s my duty studying structure of politics,
etcetera, that I should vote. I feel informed enough to do so. It’s also a civic duty, so really
everyone should vote. There are a lot of people throughout history that were not allowed to vote,
so I would say we’re all pretty lucky and should take advantage.