“There’s always space for us, even if we have to make it”: Young Coloradans reject being an afterthought
After a youth-focused Democratic governor forum in Aurora, organizers and attendees said younger voters should not wait for political campaigns to decide when their voices count.
AURORA, Colo. — “We’re the generation that’s dealing with a lot of what the generations before us left behind,” Melanie Kesner said. “We have this mess to clean up.”
Kesner, the senior Colorado state director of Young Invincibles, spoke after a June 13 youth-focused Democratic gubernatorial forum at the Community College of Aurora.
“The issues that matter to us are not considered,” Kesner said.
The goal, she said, was to put young adults directly in front of the candidates and force the governor’s race to confront issues affecting them.
“Not only does their vote matter, but their participation matters,” she said.
Kesner said that conviction is personal. She grew up watching her family face mental illness, gaps in access to care and the isolation of handling those problems privately.
Even though her family had some resources, she said, they still suffered largely in private.
“We didn’t talk to anybody about it,” Kesner said. “Mental health is an issue that people don’t talk about often, and it’s very isolating.”
She said those experiences led her toward health-policy work and advocacy for affordable physical and mental health care.
State elections are not the minor leagues
Sarah Navidi, a Young Invincibles alumna, said young voters often concentrate on presidential elections while overlooking state races that may affect their daily lives more directly.
Those elections can shape the programs, services and opportunities available to young people, she said, yet they often receive less attention and lower participation.
Maria Davila of Mi Familia Vota said that makes it especially important for voters to look beyond candidates’ personalities and examine the policies they support.
“That’s what the next two or four years are going to look like,” Davila said.
For young people who have done that research and still feel discouraged, Bridget Namuli, a forum attendee, offered a simpler argument.
“Even if you feel discouraged, you should just vote anyway,” Namoli said. “Your vote may make a difference.”
“The youth voice was at the table”
Gabriela Chavez, a civic influencer engagement lead, said young people should be part of political conversations from the beginning, not added after candidates and institutions have already decided what matters.
She pointed to her experience growing up in School District 27J and later returning to help with a campaign for additional school funding.
Chavez said previous attempts to pass a mill levy had failed. During the campaign she joined, young people helped organizers speak to the community differently.
“There’s always space for us, even if we have to make it,” Chavez said. “But there’s people here who already care, that are already making that space. And there’s so many more young people that are welcome to join.”
