Essay 6

A: Ones age and education have a lot to do with how one votes, if they even vote at all. As people grow older, politics become more and more important to them. When before they might have been too busy, or maybe just didn't care enough to vote; now, they suddenly find themselves with much more time on their hands and are much more opinionated. At a young age, we are influenced by our parents in the way in which we vote. As we grow older we become more and more independent. Although we normally stay on the same side as our parents, this isn't always the case. In addition to age,  education plays a huge role is your likeliness to vote. On average, the more educated the person is, the more likely they are to vote. This is because educated people tend to pay more attention to politics, and are more concerned with the outcomes of elections. This isn't to say that an uneducated person doesn't care at all, they are just less likely to know the consequences of their decision.

B: The requirement to register before you vote has been one major federal requirement that has decreased voter turnout. When it comes to voting, many Americans are just plane lazy. They don't want to have to stand in line and fill out pages of documents just to vote. In this way, requiring voters to register has decreased voter turn out. Some states now offer registering while voting. This means you no longer have to submit a separate form just to vote. This technique has raised the voter turnout in select areas.

C: Media is the most influential linkage institution in the 21st century. Through media is how most Americans find out about the presidential nominees, what they stand for, and who's winning. Without the media, many americans would be left in the dark. The fact of the matter is that if media didn't exist, our already minuscule voter turnout would be almost inexistent. The media also completes the circle by not only supplying information from candidates to citizens, but also from citizens to candidates. This creates a more tailored government; by the people, for the people. The media also plays a part in how we vote. Because of recent advancements, we can now vote from thousands of miles away from the capitol. This allows anyone to vote, not just people who live in Washington D.C.