I’m a Bowdoin College student, born and raised in Woolwich. I believe that it is imperative that young people in our Maine communities vote and recognize the importance of educating themselves on local and national politics.

The decisions of my generation will shape our future, so we must get involved at the grassroots to champion the causes we are most passionate about and to support the candidates that also feel devoted to similar issues. We as a people get to decide what is “right” and “wrong” for our state and our nation. We cannot shy away from using our voices, for we are the cogs that make the clock of the nation operate.

The definition of democracy, quoted by Abraham Lincoln in the Gettysburg Address, is a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Young people should understand that despite their age, they are “the people” and have every right to participate in the decisions that will change their present and future as much as anyone else. So, I encourage all people, regardless of age, to vote in this crucial election on Nov. 8.

Eliza Schotten
Woolwich