In previous posts, before the Iowa caucuses, I predicted that the young Obama supporters wouldn't actually turn out on caucus night. Traditionally, this group of voters disappoints pollsters when it actually comes to showing up to vote.
I am pleased to say that I was dead wrong. These young folks are turning out in droves this year, but their candidate of choice, Barack Obama, is only partially responsible for this overwhelming turnout. Part of it simply has to do with the vast numbers of young people who are becoming eligible to vote this year. In 1990, the largest group of babies born in the United States since the baby boom made their debut. This year, those young people are coming of age in the most fortuitous way. They are eligible to vote!
Chelsey and Bailey, my kids, were born in 1989 and 1991 respectively. The oldest, Chelsey, who proudly supported Obama at our caucus, just received her first voter registration card in the mail, along with millions of her peers in the country. This new generation is finding their political voice over global tragedies such as the Iraq war and the genocide in Darfur. Online movements such as Rock the Vote are also contributing to this unprecedented call to action.
In contest after contest, young people are turning out. Most of these young folks are democrats, which bodes very well for the party in the fall elections.
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