13 Reasons Young Women Need to Vote in This Election
1. Young women are drivers of social progress and change. As a voting bloc, single women made up 23 percent of the electorate in 2012 and were a third of all young voters. New York Magazine writer Rebecca Traister wrote in her book All the Single Ladies that more and more women are choosing to marry later in life - or not at all - and their specific needs have led to the "rise to demands for pay equity, paid family leave, a higher minimum wage, universal pre-K, lowered college costs, more affordable health care, and broadly accessible reproductive rights." In fact, single women have always been essential to America's political process, Traister notes, saying, "wherever you find increasing numbers of single women in history, you find change."
2. You can prevent the election of politicians who want to roll abortion rights back to the pre-Roe v. Wade era. Anti-abortion violence has reached an all-time high in America, Robert Lewis Dear opened fire on a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado last November, and a clinic in Wisconsin shut down over concerns over security. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are practically stumbling over themselves to see who can defund Planned Parenthood first. Donald Trump's running mate, Mike Pence, passed some of the harshest abortion restrictions in the country as the governor of Indiana and has said that if elected, "We'll see Roe v. Wade consigned to the ash heap of history where it belongs." Trump, for his part, said that if abortion were made illegal, women should experience "some form of punishment" for seeking them. He later backtracked on those comments and said that doctors should be punished. Policies like these would send women back to the ages of back-alley and coat-hanger abortions, and the results would literally be deadly for women.
3. Your vote will help determine as many as four Supreme Court Justices. Three of the Supreme Court's eight sitting judges, who serve for life once appointed, are over 75. It's possible that, with one seat is already vacant after the death of Antonin Scalia, the next president may have the opportunity to appoint four judges. In the past few years, the Supreme Court has made landmark rulings on abortion, affirmative action, and gay marriage. Even the appointment of one justice can tip the scales on major decisions that affect the civil rights and liberties of every single American. Clinton has said that she would nominate a judge who would vote to overturn Citizen's United, the Supreme Court decision that granted corporations First Amendment rights to spend unlimited amounts on political campaigns, and uphold Roe v. Wade. Meanwhile, Trump has said his pick may overturn Roe v. Wade. Hillary Clinton has not released what judges would be on her shortlist. Donald Trump's list includes 11 very conservative judges - all of whom are white, eight of whom are male.
4. Your vote also helps determine federal judges. While Supreme Court is the most powerful court in America, as CivilRights.org explains, "The vast majority of cases never make it to the Supreme Court, but are decided by the federal courts of appeal," which decide up to 28,000 cases per year. " They "exercise enormous power" in deciding cases that determine "civil rights, rights to privacy, rights of workers, and rights of women." They also serve as training ground for future Supreme Court justices, as seven of the nine most recent justices served as federal judges. But federal judges are also nominated by the president. After Mike Pence signed a controversial anti-abortion legislation into law in Indiana in March, a federal judge blocked it from going into effect. In October, a federal judge issued an injunction, effectively blocking Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal from defunding Planned Parenthood. In June, a federal appeals court in North Carolina struck down a controversial voter ID law that it said would effectively "target African-Americans with almost surgical precision." (The Supreme Court later denied a request to reinstate the law for the 2016 election).
5. You have the opportunity to elect more women into office. Along with Hillary Clinton's historic nomination, there are over a dozen other women who could make history if elected into office in 2016 - and having women representatives in office makes a real difference in the lives of women across the country. Fifty-three percent of voters in the 2012 election were women, but women currently only make up 19 percent of Congress. In the Los Angeles Times, Nancy Cohen cites a comprehensive review of research on public policy by Beth Reingold found "women, more often than men, take the lead on women's issues, no matter how such issues are defined." One research study found that both Democratic and moderate Republican women in Congress "have been more likely than men in either party to advance legislation on child care and domestic violence," and that "Even when men and women in the same party hold similar opinions - on reproductive health issues, for example - it is the women officeholders who step up." Even in 2016, men are still making decisions about what's best for us. As President Barack Obama bluntly stated in an interview with YouTube star Ingrid Nilson, policies like the tampon tax likely only exist because men have been making laws for women. Earlier this year, Utah offered proof: There, a group of all-male lawmakers voted against eliminating the "tampon tax." Meanwhile, House Speaker Paul Ryan, who values time with his family, opposes federally mandated paid family leave. And through the course of history, men have issued prohibitive laws meant to "protect" women that instead end up hurting them. Furthermore, if women are not present, their interests might be left out in legislation. One striking example is that in 2009, an all-male Senate Democratic leadership team cut a vital amendment in the Affordable Care Act that would give women coverage for mammograms and contraception. The amendment's sponsor, Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md., insisted that it be reinstated. And at the state level, legislatures with more women tend to pass fewer restrictions on abortions.
6. You can help make sure there are women at the table beyond those who served in elected positions. Hillary Clinton has pledged that, if elected, her Cabinet will include at least 50 percent women. When Donald Trump was asked to name women, he'd appoint to his cabinet, he couldn't name any aside from his daughter Ivanka. His economic adviser team does not include any women, and before his running mate was announced, Trump's campaign rejected the idea that a woman or person of color would be right for the job. In this election, women should pay attention to what each candidate says about women and who they appoint as their advisers, because it will have a real impact on policy decisions made at all levels.
7. You can help ensure economic advancement for women. Two-thirds of minimum wage workers are women, and women make a fraction of what men make (white women make 79 cents to the dollar, while black women make just 63 cents). You can support candidates who promise to raise the minimum wage and who demand equal pay for equal work.
8. You can fight back against sexist conversation in politics. In the Republican debates, it was alarming how many politicians could talk about issues that affect women without once mentioning women. Too many of America's male leadership has no clue about how to talk to, or about, women: Donald Trump attacked Heidi Cruz and Carly Fiorina over their looks, John Kasich expressed gratitude that women were leaving the kitchen to come vote for him, and Jeb Bush seemed to not understand why women's health care needs a certain level of funding. By voting, you can send a message that talking to women like that - or ignoring them - is not acceptable.
9. Your generation is going to have to deal with the consequences of decisions made by politicians today. While every political decision has lasting impact, Millennials face a series of unique challenges that will burden them more than generations before: massive student debt and climate change. Millennials are going to be the ones most affected by climate change, which could cost them an estimated $8.8 trillion, along with inheriting a world where the occurrence of extreme weather patterns and infectious disease is predicted to increase dramatically. Millennials are also stunted by increasing loads of student-loan debt, which, in addition to creating an economic burden, also has a major impact on life decisions like getting married and having kids. Although Millennials are politically engaged, they don't show up to vote. Millennials need to vote and force politicians to address these issues.
10. Your health care is at stake. The Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare), passed in 2010, is one of President Obama's signature achievements and has given 20 million Americans access to insured health care. It also forces insurance companies to end discriminatory practices of charging women more for health care than men, and requires insurance companies to cover contraception and mammograms. In December, President Obama vetoed a bill passed by House Republicans that both attempted to repeal Obamacare and defund Planned Parenthood. However, Republican lawmakers are still pushing to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and in the 2016 election, with Trump having vowed to replace Obamacare if he is elected.
11. You can take a stand against gun violence. America has more guns, per capita, than any other nation in the world, and is responsible for one-third of the world's mass shootings. In some states, it is easier for Americans to purchase assault rifles than to access an abortion. Gun violence also disproportionately affects women, as gun access is "a key driver" to violence against women that ends in homicide, according to the Center for American Progress. In fact, "Women in the United States are 11 times more likely to be murdered with a gun than are women in other high income countries." Your vote can push lawmakers to take action on gun control and work to close loopholes that allow abusers to buy guns despite having a record of violent behavior.
12. Your vote determines your state and local officials. Some might argue that their vote doesn't matter because they are in solidly blue or solidly red states. Others might abstain from voting because they are upset by the current options for presidential candidates. But your vote has a strong impact on elected local and state politicians who pass laws that are likely to directly impact your day-to-day life. For example, in California, state lawmakers ushered in a bill enforcing a mandatory prison sentence for all rapists in the aftermath of the Brock Turner case.
13. You can help unify America. You are part of the most racially diverse generation America has ever had, with 43 percent of Millennials being non-white. Millennials are also more supportive of LGBT rights than any other generation. And yet, the 2016 election is the most polarizing our generation has seen. There's an alarming amount of hate speech, anti-immigrant rhetoric, and laws that discriminate against LGBT people. Pay attention to how candidates at all levels talk about race, immigrants, and the LGBT community when you vote.
Election Day is Nov. 8. If you haven't registered to vote yet, you can do so here.
Follow Prachi on Twitter.
You Might Also Like
