Month: May 2016

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Why Millennials Don’t Vote In Local Elections

In yet another study on voting trends of the Millennial Generation, “WHY MILLENNIALS DON’T VOTE FOR MAYOR – Barriers and Motivators for Local Voting” published in June, 2015, the Knight Foundation further substantiates what other research has shown, our election and political processes need to change if we value the generation that is our immediate future.
As I’ve written on several occasions, the Millennial Generation, now the largest generation in population and equal to Baby Boomers in the percentage of eligible voters, is the key to our future yet an enigma when it comes to voting. (Articles are here, here, and here)
Millennials are 31 percent of Nevada’s population but only 24 percent of registered voters. Of that 24 percent, 27 percent are registered as Non-Partisan. Adding those who are registered to vote in minor parties, 35 percent are not affiliated with either the Democratic or Republican Party (as of May 24, 2016). That is almost 10 percent higher than the overall state figures.
In my previous articles the common theme is how do we get this generation more interested in participating in the electoral process, take an interest in the issues and vote.
In this 2015 study, The Knight Foundation looks at lack of participation of Millennials in local elections. Why do Millennials vote for president but not for mayor and other local officials? With turnout for local elections hovering around 20 percent, this is central to improving political outcomes.
Why do Millennials not trust government at a rate one-half that of the general electorate and less than 30 percent believe participating in the political process produces positive results?
Millennials, like the rest of us, require information to make decisions. However, with the onslaught of super PACs and the replacement of news with commentary, there is less reliable information on local issues available. With less information, Millennials also do not know which source to trust. They see the existing sources partisan and distorted, not providing the unbiased information they seek. This depresses civic participation. When high mobility is added in, the lack of information further reduces the desire to learn about one’s new community.
How does this impact Millennials participation? In focus groups used for the study, 75 percent rated lack of information about candidates as the reason they do not vote. 62 percent sited not enough information about local issues.
To reverse this trend, the Knight study found Millennials want to know what tangible benefit voting provides them and how government impacts their daily lives. They are turned-off by negativity, cynicism, and talking points.

The Nevada Legislature can make significant strides in addressing Millennial participation by enacting reforms proposed in the Nevada Election Modernization and Reform Act of 2017 (NEMRA – 2017). By making our election process more responsive to the larger voting sector, not just the small party bases, the concerns of Millennials noted in the Knight study, as well as the concerns of a growing segment of the overall electorate are positively addressed. 
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Registration Closes For The Primary – Major Parties Lose Voter Share; Non-Partisan Gains

Voter registration closed for the primary election on May 24, 2016 and the numbers are not good news for either major party. Nearly across all demographics, both the Democratic and Republican Parties lost voter share while Non-Partisan and minor parties gained. And while all groups increased voters, the rate of growth for Non-Partisan and minor parties also exceeded that of the major political parties.
Another surprising statistic is where the growth in minor party registration occurred. In addition to the Independent American Party (IAP) and the Libertarian Party (Lib), there are eight political parties that have members but do not qualify for ballot access. The IAP is by far the largest of the minor parties with over 57,000 registered voters. However, the growth in the Libertarian Party and the eight small parties out-distanced the IAP with the small parties exceeding 10 percent growth in three of the six demographics followed.
State-Wide
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
6,318
1.23
39.99
-0.09
R
4,857
1.09
34.89
-0.13
NP
5,609
2.32
19.09
0.16
Other
1,814
2.38
6.03
0.05
Total not D or R
25.12
0.21
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +0.9%; Lib +2.52%; other 8 parties +10.52%
Clark County
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
5,606
1.46
43.68
-0.10
R
2,823
1.05
30.68
-0.20
NP
4,937
2.86
19.97
0.23
Other
1,548
3.17
5.67
0.08
Total not D or R
25.64
0.31
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +0.97%; Lib +2.54%; other 8 parties +16.22%
 Washoe County
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
556
0.63
36.53
-0.04
R
670
0.72
38.74
-0.01
NP
419
0.97
18.06
0.04
Other
144
0.09
6.67
0.01
Total not D or R
24.73
0.05
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +0.9%; Lib +1.48%; other 8 parties +0.55%
Rural Counties
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
156
0.38
25.15
-0.20
R
1,364
1.62
51.95
0.24
NP
253
0.98
15.87
0.47
Other
122
1.06
7.03
-0.01
Total not D or R
22.90
0.46
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +0.63%; Lib +4.2%; other 8 parties +0.12%
18 – 34 Year Old
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
2,750
2.14
37.19
-3.27
R
1,314
1.66
24.69
-0.23
NP
3,001
3.46
27.55
0.22
Other
943
4.08
7.39
0.10
Total not D or R
34.94
0.32
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +1.38%; Lib +2.9%; other 8 parties +15.78%
55+
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
1,374
0.62
40.36
-0.10
R
2,196
0.97
41.16
0.05
NP
893
1.20
13.51
0.05
Other
277
1.01
4.97
0
Total not D or R
18.48
0.05
Other includes IAP, Lib, and 8 parties without ballot access.
IAP +0.58%; Lib +1.31%; other 8 parties +4.78%
 In the legislature, both assembly and senate districts remain unchanged from February with 11 senate districts (52.38%) and 21 assembly districts (50%) having the number of voters registered as Non-Partisan or total not registered as either Democratic or Republican either exceeding or  within five percent of one of the major political parties. However, the trend is the same; unaffiliated voters are increasing voter share while the Democratic and Republican Party lose.
The fact that the trend of voters leaving the Democratic and Republican Party continues is not surprising. The fact it continues in spite of intense efforts to energize voters by both major parties immediately before the primary election should send a clear message that voters want the system to change.
The 2017 Nevada legislative session can address this problem by enacting the Nevada Election Modernization and Reform Act of 2017 (NEMRA – 2017)

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Are Legislators, Candidates, and Political Parties Ignoring the Future? (Opinion) – UPDATE May 23, 2016

Not only is the Millennial Generation the most populous, but according to a new study released by Pew Research Center, they now equal Baby Boomers in the number of eligible voters. According to the study, Boomers comprise 69.7 percent of eligible voters while Millennials make up 69.2 percent. 
The similarity stops there and hence the challenge. Millennials are not voting in numbers that gives them political influence. How to change this was the subject of the original article posted March 30, 2016. You can read that below. 
I am a Baby Boomer. Since I turned 30, I have looked forward to every new decade of my life, 70 is rapidly approaching. Every year has gotten better and I relish the idea that this will continue.
Since the 1960’s, Baby Boomers have held the distinction of being the largest generation. That changed in 2015. The honor now belongs to the Millennial Generation, those born between 1981 and 1997. This generation is our future. Boomers and to some extent older Generation Xers need to not only accept this but embrace it.
While leading the pack as the most populous generation, Millennials are trailing when it comes to voting. In Nevada, Millennials are 31 percent of the population but make up only 24 percent of registered voters (41 percent of eligible voters are not registered to vote). Since there is a lack of participation in the process it is not surprising that only 4 percent of Nevada legislators are Millennials.
Millennials do not embrace political parties to the extent of Boomers. Nearly 28 percent of Millennials registered to vote are registered as Non-Partisan. This is nine percent higher than the overall state total. It is important to note that prior to the presidential caucus the percentage was close to 30 percent and a clear 10 percent higher than the state.
Millennials are turned off to the political climate. To be encouraged to participate, they want answers not rhetoric. They want to know how elected officials and candidates will address issues important to them. They do not fit the standard party mold or comprise part of the so-called party base. In a study released by Pew Research in September, 2014, 84 percent hold positions that are not on the ideological fringe.
Given they are our future, it makes no sense to not take the steps necessary to get this generation involved, not only as voters but as candidates and elected officials. Holding on to the politics of the past will not serve our communities, our state, or our nation well.
One way Nevada legislators can demonstrate their commitment to engaging the Millennial Generation would be to enact the Nevada Election Modernization and Reform Act of 2017 (NEMRA- 2017) during the 2017 legislative session. NEMRA – 2017 will engage not only the Millennial Generation but all voters who feel rejected by the current hyper-partisan political landscape. NEMRA – 2017 will make our electoral process fully inclusive, welcome all voters’ participation at all elections, encourage meaningful discussion of the issues rather than rhetoric and talking points, and demonstrate every vote, not just those from a small portion of each major political party, truly matters.
  

We can welcome the future and all the promise it holds or stick with the past, leaving our political decisions in the hands of an aging small party base that is not representative of the overall population. The choice is ours and the 2017 Nevada legislature’s to make.
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Is Election Reform Also a Tax Fairness Issue?

Like it or not, taxes and fees paid by you, me, and businesses are the income that pay for the government services we have come to expect. For these payments, we receive both direct and indirect benefit. And while some may complain about the amount or purpose of a certain tax or fee, most taxpayers accept the fact that they are necessary to keep government working.
But what would be the reaction if taxpayers knew some of their taxes were being used to fund activities of private organizations?

Most may not realize that political parties, even though they play an integral role in our governmental process, are private organizations. Their status as private organizations has been underscored by the U.S. Supreme Court in right of association cases and their tax status is covered in 26 U.S. Code § 527. Yet every two years Nevada taxpayers indirectly provide $3 – 4 million to the Republican and Democratic Parties. This amount is the cost to counties and the state of closed primary elections. These elections are open only to members of each party with the purpose of choosing the individual party’s nominees. As such, they are fulfilling a function of internal party operations. Again, this fact has been highlighted in U.S. Supreme Court decisions.

 

I believe all political parties agree that taxes, when imposed, must be fair and that all taxpayers should receive either direct or indirect benefit from their tax payments. However, using current voter registrationdata, 318,000 Nevada voters / taxpayers (25% of active registered voters) receive neither direct nor indirect benefit from tax payments used to support these two private organizations. I respect but do not agree with the arguments that if the taxpayers who currently are not registered to vote in one of the major political parties wanted to benefit from this public support of private organizations (political parties) they should simply re-register. However, this argument misses the point of why voters have left, and continue to leave both the Democratic and Republican Party.  As State Senator Patricia Farley (R – Las Vegas) recently stated to Las Vegas Review Journal Reporter Sandra Chereb, “If I’m a registered independent and I like a Republican, I shouldn’t have to change my party affiliation.”

 

Contrary to closed primary elections, general elections do provide a direct benefit to all taxpayers and as such should be funded by tax dollars. The winner of each race in the general election goes on to represent all citizens of their district in a legislative body. There are two options available to correct this tax issue.

 

The first, but likely most financially difficult, is to require the political parties to fund their closed primary. How each party raises the necessary dollars would be up to the party. However, removing public funding from such private use would be in keeping with the party’s status.

 

The second, and probably the fairest and easiest to implement, would be for the 2017 Nevada legislature to pass and enact election reform as proposed in the Nevada Election Modernization and Reform Act for 2017 (NERMA – 2017). The proposed systemic changes would ensure all taxpayers receive a direct benefit and justify the use of tax dollars. 

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Non-Partisan Voter Registration Trend Returns Despite Approaching Primary

Given the change in voter registration trends favoring the major parties leading up to the presidential caucuses, the question was will that trend continue all the way to the June, 2016 primary. The answer is a resounding NO!
The numbers for April, 2016 were released May 2nd by the secretary of state and Non-Partisan has returned as the fastest growing block of voters. The only demographic where this not true in in the rural counties where the GOP continues to outpace the other parties. State-wide, in Clark and Washoe Counties, among 18 – 34 year olds and those 55 years old and over, Non-Partisan leads in the percentage of growth and the percentage increase of voter share.
State-Wide
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
10,293
2.05
40.08
0.01
R
5,252
1.28
35.02
-0.28
NP
7,931
3.39
18.93
0.25
Other
1,801
2.42
5.98
0.03
Total not D or R
24.91
0.28
2nd consecutive month where GOP lost more than ¼ of 1 percent
Clark County
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
9,411
2.52
43.78
-0.03
R
3,766
1.41
30.88
-0.36
NP
7,251
4.38
19.74
0.34
Other
1,590
3.36
5.59
0.12
Total not D or R
25.33
0.46
Washoe County
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
746
0.86
36.57
-0.02
R
795
1.41
38.75
-0.02
NP
503
1.18
18.02
0.05
Other
139
0.88
6.66
-0.01
Total not D or R
24.68
0.04
 Rural Counties
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
136
0.33
25.35
-0.08
R
691
0.83
51.71
0.08
NP
177
0.69
15.40
-0.50
Other
72
0.63
7.04
0
Total not D or R
22.44
-0.50
18 – 34 Year Old
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
5,098
4.13
40.46
0.13
R
1,702
2.20
24.92
-0.39
NP
3,969
4.79
27.33
0.26
Other
845
3.79
7.29
0
Total not D or R
34.62
0.26
2nd consecutive month where GOP lost more than 1/3 of 1 percent
55+
Party
Change in # Voters
% Change
% Voter Share
Difference in Voter Share %
D
2,336
1.06
40.46
-0.05
R
2,101
0.93
41.11
-0.10
NP
1,547
2.13
13.46
0.13
Other
404
1.50
4.97
0.02
Total not D or R
18.43
0.15
In the legislature, both assembly and senate districts remain unchanged from February with 11 senate districts (52.38%) and 21 assembly districts (50%) having the number of voters registered as Non-Partisan or total not registered as either Democratic or Republican either exceeding or  within five percent of one of the major political parties. However, the trend is the same, unaffiliated voters are increasing voter share while the Democratic and Republican Party lose.
There is no reason to expect this trend to reverse before the close of registration for the primary election in May. Given that, I believe it is a safe assumption that turnout for the primary will once again be around 25 percent.
The 2017 Nevada legislative session can address this problem by enacting the Nevada Election Modernization and Reform Act of 2017 (NEMRA – 2017)

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