Why Did College Student Voter Participation DOUBLE In 2018? Was It More Than Just Hatred Of Trump?

Thursday, we discussed New Mexico's plan to fully fund tuition in public colleges and universities for all its students. That's delivering-- something Pelosi and her pathetic leadership team doesn't understand in any way shape or form. Yesterday, Tufts University released a report about student participation in the 2018 election cycle. It doubled-- and it helped Democrats recapture the House and elect does of new members. Pelosi and her team need to understand that these woke students did not vote to further the career trajectories of a bunch of corrupt establishment Democrats. And if they don't start delivering, these students will not become part of any lasting Democratic Party coalition.

In a discussion of the Israeli elections I had today with one progressive congressman, he noted that "the standard liberal platform of better healthcare, lower housing costs, higher pension payments, better relations with the Palestinians, etc. (Labor/Meretz) went absolutely nowhere" and that "the socialist parties in Europe are getting absolutely clobbered." When I asked him why, he said, among other things, that "when the socialist parties actually are in power, they don’t do shit for people, the most recent case being France under Hollande, whose approval rating ended at 22%."

I reminded him of how some members of Congress, himself included, do pass legislation of great value to working families. I asked if it is reasonable to expect candidates running on platforms that will make peoples' live tangibly better to follow through. He said Bernie's record-- having passed more legislation that any other member when he was in the House is a good sign he and reminded me that Elizabeth Warren-- albeit before she was a senator-- created the CFPB and got it through Congress and signed by the president and "in the Senate, she made her mark by creating, thoughtful, sound legislation that was never going to go anywhere, but still represented what the Democrats ought to do when they return to power."

In her introduction to the Tufts report, Nancy Thomas, Director of the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education, wrote that "In the 2018 midterm elections, the average student voting rate at U.S. colleges and universities more than doubled from the last midterm elections, jumping from 19% in 2014 to 40% in 2018. The fact that student voting rates increased is no surprise since, according to the U.S. Election Project’s analysis, voting rates among all Americans increased 13.6 percentage points. What is surprising is that college and university student voting rose a remarkable 21 percentage points. Perhaps now is a good time to stop focusing on why college students don’t vote and start understanding why they do vote."

The Climate Crisis is driving a great deal of student activism and electoral participation-- as are proposals for debt-free and tuition-free college. I asked some of the congressional candidates what they are finding when they are out talking with younger voters. "Looking back over our history," said Jason Butler, the progressive Democrat running against George Holding (R) in northeast North Carolina, "young adults have always been critical in pushing political dialogue but now I sense an even deeper urgency. As I talk to high school and college students I am struck with the passion in their voice and their willingness to act. Specifically, the top two issues I consistently hear are climate change and an assault weapons ban. And this makes sense as these are issues that affect them directly. It is a common saying that “all politics is local” and this is ever-the-case with young adults when it comes to these two issues. They are living through mass shootings and must regularly endure “active shooter drills.” And furthermore, they realize that they have the most at stake when it comes to climate change. Yes, we need to listen to them and be willing to be led by them because they are not afraid to blaze a new pathway in our political discourse. From the Climate Strike this Friday to the March for Our Lives Movement - young adults are changing politics for the good. I will continue to support their leadership and vision for a better society."

Kara Eastman's daughter just went off to college and Kara, running for Congress in a blue-trending Omaha district talks to college students out on the hustings all the time. They are likely to help her replace backward Republican Donald J. Bacon, a complete Trump patsy. "College-age students tell me they are excited to vote for someone who does not talk down to them and who speaks about the things they care about," Kara told me today. "I recently attended a University of Nebraska Omaha and Creighton University collaborative event where I talked to many students. They voiced their concerns for the environment with a particular focus on pollution. A few also said they were happy to see that I was not taking corporate PAC donations as they are tired of the corrupt political system. As a campaign, we include college students as interns, volunteers, advisors and staff because we know that their voices are so important to the rising electorate."

Progressive congressional candidate Kathy Ellis was in L.A. for a wedding yesterday and we sat down for dinner. She told me that young people in southeast Missouri "are fed up with the current situation, and rightfully so. They graduate college with enormous amounts of debt and dwindling opportunities for well-paying jobs. For young people in my district, the situation is even more dire: with the shrinking of our local job market, young people who can attend school are forced to move elsewhere to pay off their debt. They want debt-free college; a living wage; better, more affordable healthcare; and opportunities to move forward in society. I couldn't agree with them more, and I proud to be building a campaign team of almost entirely young people."