One young adult walks past a polling station, carrying on with their day, indifferent to the political world. One less person fills a booth that day; one ballot never makes it to the election officials. One vote changes the life of a candidate and potentially the lives of hundreds, thousands, millions of citizens.

With the 2016 presidential election approaching, students 18 years of age or older will have the ability to vote for the candidate of their choice. This year young adults can participate in the biggest election in the United States – an opportunity that only comes around every four years. Unfortunately, many students take this opportunity for granted. To avoid this, people should vote as soon as they get the chance.

Most political decisions greatly affect a nation or community’s youth. By participating in an election, a student can provide a voice for the young adults of their generation and vote for their personal benefit.

Additionally, voting for the first time serves as an important milestone in a person’s life. With this experience, a student can learn responsibility and making their own decisions. Furthermore, the student will feel a sense of pride for having taken a small part in an important election.

Many older people assume millennials cannot make proper decisions and do things correctly. However, young people’s opinions hold just as much significance as anyone else’s, and millennials should voice their opinions in order to have a fair, unbiased political system.

A democracy allows its citizens to build their government by means of polling. Young adults should take advantage of this privilege and visit their local polling station whenever they can. This way, the young people of America will have a voice and help impact the world around them.