Democratic Youth Debate in the Works

Presidential debates targeted at youth have a checkered history. In 1992, Clinton famously appealed to young voters with his appearance in an MTV/Rock the Vote debate where he answered that most substantive of policy questions - "Boxers or Briefs?" Then in 2004, at a Democratic forum, CNN and Rock the Vote again cut to the quick of current policy debates by asking a detailed question about the role of technology in our lives - "Mac or PC?"

It's that time again. 25 youth organizers/organizations (myself included) are getting together to push Democratic candidates to participate in a pre-primary forum addressing issues that concern the Millennial Generation. Rock the Vote will again be the sponsor of the debate, and broadcast partner is still TBD.

It's easy to be cynical about this, considering past incarnations, but this is an important media event that will reach millions of eyeballs. Considering the state of television and print journalism today, it may be the only chance to give a mass audience of Millennials a substantive look at the candidates beyond the simple caricatures the media has established.

There are a lot of ways that these debates could be improved upon. CNN/YouTube are sponsoring their own debate that will consist primarily of questions submitted via YouTube. That's an interesting model that may help to democratize the Q&A process and avoid the "overframing" that plagued the CNN debate in '04. I've always enjoyed the IRC back-channel talks at conferences like PDF - maybe some sort of running commentary could be given prominent coverage online or in the "crawl" . . . ?

Y'all are a smart bunch that read this site - what ways do you see new media potentially creating a more substantive and engaging debate? Something that our generation will not just watch (and hopefully participate in), but also walk away from a more informed and energized voter? Something you won't want to mock or be indifferent to the day after.

What issues would you like to see addressed that aren't being looked at by the media (aka, how do we make this about more than the cost of John Edwards' haircut)? I can think of a couple that I'd like to see:

• Where do the candidates stand on Net Neutrality what actions would they take as president to protect it?
• Nail down Barack Obama on some policy specifics w/r/t Global Warming and Health Care. Knock him off his rhetoric and into the real world for a bit.
• Get Hillary to talk honestly about her plan for Iraq - long-term bases, troop deployment, the role of diplomacy, etc.
• Get them to commit to supporting national election reforms that help more young people vote - affirming residency on campus, same day registration, mail-in voting, etc.
• Talk about how they plan to make college affordable and alleviate the massive debt the young people must assume to enter the middle class.

It's still early in the process of figuring out the structure and content of this debate, and you've actually got a a chance to have some input into that process. So what would you like to see? What potential pitfalls need to be avoided at all costs?

Below the jump I've included the letter that was sent to the Democratic campaigns urging them to participate (this version was addressed Sen. Edwards). Give it a read, and if you are a progressive leader, or run a youth organization and want to lend your support, send me an email and I'll connect you to the right folks.

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May 25, 2007

Dear Senator Edwards:

We, over 25 groups working to increase youth participation in politics, write to you today to encourage you to commit to a debate focused on a critical constituency group—young people ages 18-35.

Young people are trending more Democratic for the first time in over a decade and we are voting in record numbers. The 2008 Presidential elections will be critical for securing young people as a long-term voting bloc for Democrats. So, what does this mean for your campaign?

Young people can be the decisive voting bloc in getting a Democratic president in the White House. The last two elections showed us that all it takes to capture the youth vote is to talk to us about issues we care about and to target us as voters. A youth-focused debate is a great starting point to do both of those and to get our votes.

In 2004, young people reversed the decline in turnout among our generation that had occurred since the voting age was lowered in 1971. With an increase of 11% points in 2004, our groups knew we had to work hard to keep young people involved and active to keep the youth vote trend moving forward.

The 2006 election cycle proved to be a huge success for the youth vote. Young people not only increased their vote, which is difficult in mid-term elections, but we voted for Democrats with a 22 point margin over Republicans. This is significant increase as young people used to split our vote evenly among Democrats and Republicans.

Young people are not only voting for Democrats; for the first time in several years we are also identifying as Democrats. Just a few years ago, young people were split evenly among Democrats, Republicans and Independents. Now, 43% of young people as saying they are Democrats, only 31% Republican and a shrinking 26% of young people are identifying as Independents.

In the next ten years, Gen Y will be 25-30% of the electorate and we are already 21% of the electorate. Research shows that if a person votes for a Democrat three times in a row, you have them as a Party-voter for a life time. Young people voted for Democrats in 2004 and 2006 making 2008 a critical window for creating a generation of voters; a critical bloc that will support Democratic candidates for the next 50 years.

Senator Edwards, your Presidential campaign has the opportunity to keep our generation involved in politics. We hope that you will agree to participate in a debate on the issues and concerns of the future majority – today's young voters. We will do the work on the ground getting young people to the polls, but we need your help in garnering the national media attention that a focused debate would surely bring.

All of the youth groups co-signing this letter have worked hard in getting young people to the polls in both the 2004 and 2006 national elections. The 2008 election will be the coveted third election that we must secure young people as a critical base of voters by doing everything we can to keep them engaged and voting. A nationally televised debate focused on young people is a crucial step towards ensuring young voters are engaged and active in the 2008 elections.

We look forward to a conversation about the debate and how we can continue to work together to get more young people to the polls. We are confident the youth debate will prove to be the most fun and engaging debate this election season—young people know how to have fun and talk about changing the world all at the same time. We hope you join us for the party!

Sincerely,

Alexandra Acker, Executive Director, Young Democrats of America
Thomas Bates, Executive Director, Democrats Work
Jason Cecil, President, Young Democrats of Georgia
Michael Connery, Blogger for Future Majority; Founder of Music for America
Meighan Davis, Organizer, SEIU
Bess Evans, National Council Chair, College Democrats/Democratic National Committee
A'shanti Fayshel Gholar, Co-Chair, DNC Youth Council; Nevada State Democratic Party
Jane Fleming Kleeb, Executive Director, Young Voter PAC
Michael Gottwald, Youth Leader
James H. Dean, Chair, Democracy for America
Latoia Jones, Executive Director, College Democrats/Democratic National Committee
Billy Joyner, Chair, Young Democrats of America's State President’s Association
Awais Khaleel, Vice President, College Democrats/Democratic National Committee
Peter Levine, Director, CIRCLE/University of Maryland
John Marble, Communications Director, Stonewall Democrats
Eddy Morales, former President of the United States Student Association
Molly Neitzel, Executive Director, Music for America
Benjamin Quinto, Executive Director, Global Youth Action Network
Jason Rae, Secretary, DNC Youth Council
Adriane Talbott, Executive Director, Generation Engage
Goutam U. Jois, Youth Leader
Scott Warren, Director, A Student Anti-Genocide Coalition (STAND)
Kristina Wilfore, Executive Director, Ballot Initiative Strategy Center
Billy Wimsatt, Executive Director and Founder, League of Young Voters
Lauren Wolfe, President, College Democrats/Democratic National Committee

P.S. You don’t have to dye your hair blue or wear a black t-shirt under your suit jacket to impress us and get our vote. Target us as voters (not just campaign volunteers) and talk to us about the issues we care about…global warming, Iraq, health care and financial security. It’s that simple.