Tuesday was the 10th annual Your Voice Matters Youth Voting Summit in Cleveland.
An event to inspire and empower the next generation of voters in Cuyahoga County.
I asked Chelsea Payne, 17, a senior at Lakewood High School, what she learned at the event and is taking back to her school.
“Making a change, giving people a voice,” Payne said.
She told me her school is very diverse, and world issues are important to her fellow students. She said making sure everyone’s voice is heard is important.
“I organize a lot of stuff within my school, but I don’t do a lot within my community, and I think that’s what I want to focus on when I go back.”
Drew McSears, 17, a senior at Richmond Heights High School, told me he’s really curious about voting because he’ll be eligible to vote next year and wants to learn more.
He is excited to vote.
“The opportunity to make a change in our community because what they were talking about today is there were some elections that were decided by as little as 12 votes,” said McSears. “So, having that kind of power in your hands to make a change means a lot.”
He said if people don’t vote for the candidates or issues that matter to them, then “we can’t get what we want!”
Payne and McSears were among about 250 students from about a dozen high schools attending the event.
Cuyahoga County Health and Human Services hosts the summit in partnership with Tri-C and the City of Cleveland.
Organizers focus on young people ages 16 to 19, educating and empowering them to participate in the electoral process and know their vote matters.
“So that they have a safe place that is nonpartisan where they can discuss the issues that currently affect them, and to give them the resources and tools so they can make informed decisions when they are eligible, if not already, to vote on Election Day,” said Yvonne Dortch, Cuyahoga County HHS voting rights coordinator.
Well-known and multifaceted Clevelander Ricky Smith moderated the event and said he’s walking away inspired and motivated.
“I am because, a lot of times the youth get such a bad rap and we think they’re not doing this or that,” said Smith. “They know way more than we think they know, and just to know that they matter, and the kids coming today and the questions they’ve asked, and the statements and things – they’re on it and I think the world is in an OK place.”
Tuesday night, Terminal Tower in downtown Cleveland will be lit up in red, white, and blue in honor of the tenth anniversary of the ‘Your Voice Matters Youth Voting Summit,’ designed to increase turnout among younger voters.
Students who'll be 18 on Election Day registered to vote at the summit, while younger students pledged to encourage family members to register.
