FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 7, 2012
Contact
Rae Roca
Rae.roca@younginvincibles.org
202.378.3526
Youth Vote Deciding Factor in Election, Account for 19% of Voters:
Young Invincibles Looks Forward to Working with President Obama and the 113th Congress to Expand Opportunity for Young Americans
[WASHINGTON, DC] – Young Americans accounted for 19% of the voting population during last night’s election, up 1% over the 2008 election. No longer labeled with an “enthusiasm gap,” young voters turned out their friends and loved ones in huge numbers, establishing themselves as a serious voting block. Historically, Washington has failed to address key long-term economic issues facing young people.
Aaron Smith, Executive Director of Young Invincibles said, “The next several years will be transformative for young people. As the 113th Congress and President Obama head to work in the next few months, we look forward to tackling many of the issues that brought so many young Americans to the ballot box yesterday including health care, higher education and jobs.”
As health care reform moves forward, Young Invincibles expects that over half of the newly eligible Medicaid recipients will be young. Subsidies to buy insurance and other affordability measures will be key to a generation that faces the highest uninsurance rate of any age group. With skyrocketing tuition and an average of over $26,000 in student debt for most graduates, higher education must also be a priority for the new Congress. Young adults continue to face a tough economic environment. Young African Americans saw unemployment increase from 25.1% in September to 27.6% in October. Meanwhile, Hispanic youth unemployment rose from 15.4% last month to 17%. Our policy makers need to act immediately to create more jobs and economic opportunities for young Americans.
Young Invincibles recently released the “Young American Ideas Book,” a report proposing 12 new ideas to get our generation back on track. The report addresses concrete fixes to health care, higher education and jobs for young Americans.
For the Young Invincibles Ideas Book, visit https://younginvincibles.org/