Too Young, Can't Vote — Why Should I Care?

As a teenager, voting has always felt like something I would worry about later. After all, I still have a couple years left.

I would often see campaign signs posted on lawns around Milpitas and political advertising on social media, but it wasn’t until recently that I understood what went on behind them. What does someone actually have to do to run for mayor? How much does social media influence voters? And if I cannot vote yet, why should I even care?

With another mayoral election approaching in Milpitas, I decided to find out.

One of my biggest questions was what it actually takes to become a candidate. Getting your name on a ballot is only just the beginning. Candidates have to communicate their ideas with residents and convince voters that they are the right person to run the city.

I was also curious about the role social media plays in elections. As a teenager, a lot of the news I come across is through social media, like Instagram or TikTok, whether I am looking for it or not. That makes it easier than ever for candidates to reach younger people, but it also makes knowing which information to trust so much more important.

The biggest question for me, though, was why teenagers should care at all.

Even if we cannot vote yet, decisions made by local mayors affect the parks, roads, libraries, businesses and public spaces we interact with every day. Learning about those decisions now can also prepare us for when we finally can vote.

I started this process knowing very little about local elections. I still cannot cast a ballot this November, but for the first time, I am starting to understand why I should be paying attention.