The role of young voters in the election

Editor’s note: This show has been canceled due to special live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

Younger people have increasingly voted more in recent years, with voter turnout among those under 30 going from 20 percent in 2014 to 36 percent in 2018.

In the latest Minnesota Poll from MPR News and the Star Tribune, enthusiasm is high. More than half of the voters 34 and younger said they “definitely” will cast a ballot.

Young voters have been a subject of discussion on the campaign trail. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders talked with reporters in early March about his difficulty in turning out young people. But Sanders asserts that he continues to win the generational divide, with older voters turning out for former Vice President Joe Biden and younger voters for him.

Kerri Miller will talk with two political scientists about young voters; the issues that rise to the top for them; and what this election looks like for young voters of color.

Guests:

• Stella M. Rouse is an associate professor in the Department of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland. She also directs the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement and is the associate director of the University of Maryland Critical Issues Poll. Rouse is also the author of two books, including “The Politics of Millennials: Political Beliefs and Policy Preferences of America’s Most Diverse Generation.”

• Melanye Price is a professor of political science at Prairie View A&M University and principal investigator for their African American Studies Initiative. Her most recent book is “The Race Whisperer: Barack Obama and the Political Uses of Race.”