Why Gen Z’s Vote Could Shape America’s Future

By Ashna Mitta

Coalition4Justice Intern

Gen Z (born between between 1997 and 2012) have never known a world without social media or internet access and are making their voices heard.

Every election cycle, we’re reminded that voting is a powerful way to influence laws, shape policies, and hold leaders accountable. Lately, voting is more than just our civic responsibility.

Regardless of political affiliation, elections have lasting consequences—each vote influences the protections and policies that affect our lives.

I believe many young Americans feel frustrated with our political system. Democracy can often seem distant, and people tend to distrust major institutions, feel discouraged by extreme political polarization, and question whether their voices can truly compete with the influence of money and special interests. Social media has added to this tension in both positive and negative ways. While it has made it easier for young people to stay informed, organize around causes, and engage in civic discussions, it has also fueled misinformation, division, and political fatigue. As a result, young voters find themselves caught between caring deeply about the future and wondering whether their participation really matters. Yet history repeatedly shows that individual votes can be impactful. This tension is captured in YelloPain's video, "My Vote Don't Count, which speaks to the frustration many Americans feel about voting while at the same time challenging viewers to reconsider the power of their vote. Its message serves as an important reminder that participating in democracy remains one of the most effective ways people can influence their communities and help shape the future.

The right to vote in the United States was never automatically guaranteed equally to everyone. Women, Black Americans, Native Americans, immigrants, and other marginalized communities had to organize, protest, and sacrifice in order to gain meaningful access to the ballot box. Voting rights have been fought for generations. Because of that history, choosing not to participate can unintentionally weaken the very democratic protections people before us struggled to secure.

What makes this moment especially important is that debates about democracy are no longer theoretical. They are happening now. Conversations about voting access, executive power, public education, immigration, reproductive rights, and federal oversight are again becoming central political issues. Whether someone supports or opposes these changes, elections are ways that citizens can exercise their civic responsibility in order to resolve these pressing societal issues that also impact them.

Voting is more than just the presidential election. Other elections at the local election level such as the school boards, municipal, judicial, governors, and congressional races, are equally important. These all have direct impacts on people’s everyday life. Policies regarding community policing, equitable education funding, transportation, housing and healthcare justice, voting rights and access are frequently decided closer to home than people realize.

In Washington, for example, election officials regularly publish voter registration deadlines and ballot information to encourage participation and availability. The Washington Secretary of State Elections Calendar outlines voting periods, registration deadlines, and ballot return requirements throughout the year. These systems exist because participation is essential to the proper functioning of democracy.

The truth is that democracy is never guaranteed forever. It depends on public participation, public trust, and public accountability. When fewer people vote, fewer voices are represented. When citizens disengage entirely, political power becomes concentrated among smaller groups of people who do participate consistently as we are now experiencing in the case of Project 2025.

One vote may feel small in a country of millions, but social change has always started with individuals deciding their voices matter and using the impact of their votes for meaningful transformation. Voting alone will not solve every issue facing the United States today, but refusing to participate guarantees that decisions will still be made — just without you in the conversation – that may have dire negative consequences for you, your loved ones, and your community.

As the country moves toward another major election cycle, the question is not simply who will win. The deeper question is what Americans believe democracy should look like moving forward, and whether citizens are willing to participate in shaping that future. Because at the end of the day, democracy only works when people show up.