Let’s face it, you get your source of news from either Twitter or from a friend on Facebook who continuously posts about the upcoming election, but you have eventually leaned towards one candidate or the other.
With this year’s election being a weird one, California State University, Stanislaus (Stan State), and other media outlets are using all of their resources to aggressively encourage young adults to register to vote in the upcoming election.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau: Voting and Registration, there are:

• 318.9 million people in the United States of America.
• 218,959,000 Americans eligible to vote.
• 146,311,000 Americans registered to vote.
• 8% of eligible youth ages 18-24 voted in the 2014 general election.

The 2016 Presidential election consists of two dynamic candidates with two very different ideas on how they plan to run the country. They very well have the ability to make or break America.
At times it seems like the democracy we have designed for this country is just a spectator sport, which is why your voice matters come Nov. 8 when you actually hold the fate of your future and for future generations.
The push to vote is emphasized this election year, and it may or may not be because of the candidates we have or because it has been laid out many times the statistics that prove that almost half of Americans are not registered to vote or do not vote at all.
Specifically, ages 18-24 are the worst when using their constitutional right to vote.
Stan State’s Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) have been present in the quad and will do so every Wednesday until Oct. 28 to inform students about ballot measures, voter rights and the races for City Council, Senate, Congress and President.
“As millennials, we have the lowest voter registration and voter turnout,” Noriel Mostajo (junior, Business), ASI Governmental Relations Coordinator, said.
On Sept. 28 ASI was in the quad quizzing students about their knowledge regarding registration deadlines and the State of California. A laptop was set-up with the Rock the Vote website, a non-profit organization whose mission is to drive the youth votes to the polls, ready for any student to quickly register to vote.
With the use of pop culture, music, art and technology, Rock the Vote strives to gain the attention of newly eligible young voters to participate in political activity.
 “Only 8% of the youth used their constitutional right to vote, so I’m really encouraging more of my fellow millennials to actually register and have a voice in this year’s vote,” Mostajo said. “It doesn’t matter so much as President but also at the local level like city council that we use our rights to elect the right people to those positions.”
On Stan State’s website there is a banner that promotes Rock the Vote. Click on the image and it will direct you to more information on events being held by ASI to promote political engagement and how to register to vote.
Some students are not taking this year’s candidacy seriously, even with their broad knowledge of the election, which effects their decision in participating in the election or their choice of future Mr./Mrs. President.
“Well my decision was not to vote for any of them [the candidates] because I was supporting Bernie Sanders in the beginning,” Caesar Estrada (sophomore, Biology) answered when asked if his choice of candidate was influenced by the Sept. 26 Presidential Debate. “So going for someone I wasn’t going for in the beginning wouldn’t really make any sense.”
Considering young adults turn 18 every day and have yet to vote once in their lifetime, most are sometimes clueless to how the voting system actually works.
An individual may be turning 27 today and still have no clue how to register or how to vote, which is the reason for the big push towards the millennial generation to educate themselves on the candidates and registering to vote.
Rock the Vote’s website makes it easy by providing simple images, guidelines and FAQs to assist with understanding where you can vote, how to register, and what will happen once you vote (hint: you get to pat yourself on the back for being a good American).
Rock the Vote is not the only organization who recognizes the impact young voters have when voting versus not voting, but so do many political supporters connected to young adults.
“I honestly think it’s kind of a mess and as Turning Point USA, we’re completely non-partisan so we don’t affiliate democrat, republican, libertarian, but as an individual I was for Marco Rubio from the beginning,” said Sam Correia, Northern California Field Director of Turning Point USA. ”The day he ended his campaigned I got a bad feeling in my stomach.” 
Turning Point USA states on their website TurningPointUSA.net that their mission is to “educate students about the importance of fiscal responsibility, free markets, and limited government. Through non-partisan debate, dialogue, and discussion, Turning Point USA believes that every young person can be enlightened to true free market values.”
“I will be voting for Donald Trump simply because he is the best choice in this election. I was not for him in the beginning but I will be voting for him simply because he is the most conservative candidate,” Correia said. “I’m holding my nose a little bit, but I also am proudly voting.”
Some advertisements have encouraged young voters to register, such as FunnyOrDie’s sketch featuring Katy Perry going to the polls naked, American Eagle Outfitters selling “Rock the Vote” attire and little reminders on Instagram that pop up on the news feed about registering.
No matter who you buy an endorsement bumper sticker from, mark your calendars for California’s Voter Registration deadline on Oct. 24 and National Election Day on Nov. 8.
Watch the next Presidential Debate Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. and participate in a Candidate Open Forum on Oct. 25 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. with local candidates answering student questions. Both events will take place in the Carol Burke Lounge.