Young Americans

NEW YORK--The Clinton campaign and the Democratic party are courting younger voters in a new move they hope will pay off in November's election.

Aiming to harness the enthusiasm and energy of young Americans, the Democrats have been holding outreach training sessions for college Democrats this week. A ticket made up of two baby boomers ("Young Guns," blared Newsweek's recent cover) is an appeal for generational change. And many of the platform planks adopted Tuesday night--including proposals for environmental protection, student loans and a pro-choice stance on abortion--appeared to be in line with the political views of the "twentysomething" generation.

The stakes are high for Democratic nominee and Arkansas Gov. William Jefferson Clinton. Strong support and turnout from young voters could mean the presidency. Clinton remembers well the power of young people campaigning door-to-door for candidates like George McGovern in 1968--Clinton was one of those young people.

Even from a cost-benefit perspective, an appeal to youth makes sense.

"You can get students to do a lot for a keg of beer. It's a pretty good investment," said James N. Harmon '93-'94, president of the College Democrats of America.

In appealing to young voters, Democrats have ample room for improvement and face a fair number of obstacles. The history is discouraging--only 29 percent of eligible 18 to 25-year-olds actually cast votes in the 1988 presidential contest, according to the Committee for the Study of the American Electorate. Senior citizens are the most reliable voters, while young people tend to turn out much less often in elections.

"National politics, for my generation, has become irrelevant," wrote 22-year-old political writer Jonathan S. Cohn '91 in Newsweek. Cohn, a former Crimson president, wrote that young people may be more likely to get involved if a candidate expressly seeks their support.

Low voter turnout is not the only obstacle for Democrats, who must also face the fact that many young people who voted in recent elections supported Republican candidates.

To increase young voter turnout and Democratic success, the party is focusing on three factors: issues, organization and candidates.

Students loans are important to many college-aged Americans, said Jennifer M. Bassuk, a senior at the University of Michigan and a political writer for the Michigan Daily. Clinton's proposal for a "domestic G.I. Bill," which would provide student loans regardless of financial need, is appealing now because, Bassuk says, "financial aid just isn't available to the middle class."

Abortion is another issue that young voters will pay close attention to, said Robert M. Zivovich '93. "Students are particularly interested in abortion simply because most of us will be having kids in the next 10 years or so," Zivovich said.

And perhaps most important to students who are thinking of the future is the economy. Said Dartmouth senior Marianne M. Ruhl, "For a lot of students, the question is 'Am I going to get a job when I graduate from this college I spent a lot of money to come to?'"

Democrats are trying to rally students behind these issues on campuses across the nation. That complicated organizational task has been assigned to Harmon and a team of political professionals. They say they have already had some success, bringing more than 2500 students to New Hampshire for the primary as well as bringing student volunteers to Pennsylvania to help elect Harris Wofford to the Senate.

Officials say the youthful ticket is particularly suited to getting young people involved. And so far Clinton, aged 45, and his running mate Sen. Albert A. Gore '69 (D-Tenn.), age 44, have at least succeeded in stirring discussion among students.

"Everybody is talking about it," said C. Alexandra Choe, a University of Pennsylvania student in town for the convention.

"We talk about it a lot," said Harvard summer school student Sheila C. Donaldson.

The challenge for the Clinton campaign is to get the students who are now just talking to begin campaigning and voting. And many would say that American democracy, which depends on citizen involvement for its vitality, faces a similar challenge. As Cohn says, "getting young people involved in politics isn't only good for the Democratic party, it's good for America."

David S. Kurnick contributed to the reporting of this story.