Are you 18 or going to be 18 by November? Then you’re in luck, on November 6th you’ll be allowed to vote in this year’s midterm election! You and the other 4 million people that will be turning into eligible voters this year will be able to help change our state governments. Unfortunately, only about 46.1% of all 18-year-olds will vote. Meaning over 2 million young people are not letting their voices be heard. It’s important to get as many young people into the voting booths as possible, as they are the smallest group of likely voters. Our voice is important; It is the future.

The midterm election focuses on several different elections. There will be the vote for governor, but there will also be ones for house representatives and Congress. About 500 different positions will be up for election throughout the united states. The 2014 midterm elections in Illinois had a turn out of 3,680,417 (12,741 in Monroe, and 11,518 in Randolph).

For this year’s governor election in Illinois we still have 4 candidates left. We have the Republican candidates Bruce Rauner, the democratic candidates are JB Pritzker, the Libertarian Party candidate Kash Jackson, the Conservative Party’s candidate State Senator Sam McCann. If you would like to learn more about the candidates, here are some helpful links.

Bruce Rauner,  JB Pritzker,  Kash Jackson, and Sam McCann

If you are interested in registering to vote, please come to visit Ms. Dahm’s classroom sometime after 4th hour. She will be able to register you with only your driver’s license and a signature. She has already helped quite a few people with their registrations.