Do you know your local representative? Your mayor? Your state representative? Your governor?
If your answer is no then you’re not alone. The majority of students have yet to learn. A poll by Haven Insights suggests that 23% of American adults who voted for a representative last November cannot name their current representative.
For those who live in the district, their representative is likely Bill Foster or Lauren Underwood, both Democrats who list their beliefs on their websites and allow anyone to contact them for questions and concerns, as they are legally obligated to do so.
The mayor of Plainfield is John F. Argoudelis. The mayor of Joliet is Terry D’Arcy. Harry Benton is the State Representative. JB Pritzker is the Governor of Illinois. However, knowing their names is not enough; all of them have complicated beliefs and policies that will and do affect everyone living in their districts.
We should all know this. We all need to know this. We encourage everyone to research their representatives and use the tools available to them, such as phone numbers, email addresses, and contact forms, to contact representatives about policy and personal concerns.
According to a recent Fielder survey of 172 students, less than 10% have contacted a representative, donated money, or volunteered for a political cause. 11.6% have protested, 24.4% have signed a petition, and 26.2% have posted on social media about a political cause.
Youth need to participate as much as they can, as without purposeful actions they have no other say.
The Civics Center estimates that only 30% of 18-year-olds are registered to vote, and our findings show that 66.7% of students eligible to vote intend to, with the remainder contemplating it. However, even those who are not eligible to vote by this year’s election may still be able to pre-register as Illinois allows pre-registration to vote at the age of 16 or older; meaning students can register up to two years before they can legally vote.
Even without involving oneself in government, there are still ways to participate in politics- ways that the majority of students are not doing. From a phone, anyone may create a change.org account and sign or create petitions. From a phone, anyone may contact their representatives. From a phone, anyone may use their voice.
If we want our voice to be heard, let’s make them heard. Use our voices- contact our representatives, register or preregister to vote, be open about issues important to us on social media, sign and create petitions, join a protest, volunteer- be loud.
