Let’s face it, so many of the people who run the US government are old and aging. President Joe Biden is 81. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is 73. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is 81. The current Congress is one of the oldest to date. And former-president Donald Trump — who will almost certainly face off against Biden in November — is 77.
America’s gerontocracy, also known as a government ruled by the elderly, is contributing to the political disillusionment of young people. It’s part of why some potential young voters say they’re frustrated by the idea of a Biden-Trump rematch in 2024.
Ahead of the majority of candidate filing deadlines for the 2024 election cycle (which differ by state for local offices), nonpartisan civic engagement organizations Run for Something Civics and Civic Nation are encouraging the next generation of young, diverse leaders to run for office themselves. These groups believe that inspiring more young people to run for down-ballot seats is the best answer to the current misalignment between US elected officials and the electorate.
This week, both groups celebrated National Run for Office Day, a civic holiday established in 2017 by Run for Something Civics’ parent organization, Run for Something. According to statistics from National Run for Office Day, “More than half of all Americans are millennials or younger, but only 6% of state legislators are 35 or younger. Among state legislators, only 33% are women, 10% are Black, 6% are Latino, and 4% are Asian/Pacific Islander. And only 0.2% of elected officials openly identify as LGBTQIA+.” The National Run for Office Day campaign seeks to remedy that.
In honor of the holiday, members of the New York City Council, Chi Ossé (the council's youngest member at 25) and Shekar Krishnan (the first Indian American elected to the council), along with New Rochelle School Board member Makeda Lewis, joined Run for Something and Run for Something Civics cofounder and co-CEO Amanda Litman and Civic Nation for a celebration and campaign meant to boost representation across all levels of government. The event was hosted by Argent, a women’s clothing company best known for its color-block power suits and civic advocacy work, at its SoHo store.
“We are really hoping to reach young people, folks under 40, but especially folks under 30, thinking about Gen Z and getting them involved in elected office,” Litman tells Teen Vogue at the downtown Manhattan event. “Knowing that their voices are wildly underrepresented in government, especially thinking about young women, young people of color, young LGBTQIA folks, and people who have lived experience that would make their leadership even more impactful and even better if they were given the chance to step up and take charge.”
During a speech at the event, Krishnan points out how young people have a unique ability to legislate and ideate on issues such as the climate crisis, housing affordability, public education, and health care. “You can see the impact it has to have much more of a diverse set of ideas, of passion,” he tells the crowd. “If we want to make sure that the voices of our communities are truly heard, [it’s important] that there isn’t this huge separation between government downtown [and our communities].”
“We need young people running for office who understand," Krishnan says, "how our communities and government have been detached from a disengaged electorate.”
It’s no secret that young voters are feeling turned off by today’s politics and are craving a shake-up. Though young voters have turned out at relatively high rates in the past three major election cycles, the most recent youth poll from Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics showed that young people are less excited to vote in 2024 than they were at the same point in the 2020 cycle.
Just 49% of young Americans ages 18 to 29 said they “definitely” plan on voting in 2024, compared with 57% who said the same at the same point four years ago. And a new poll out this week from Public Religion Research Institute shows that 58% of Gen Z and 54% of millennials say “We won’t be able to solve the country’s big problems until the older generation no longer holds power.”
Running for office is a “really powerful way to rid yourself of the disillusionment that you can’t make a difference,” says Litman. “If you run for office, you don't have to pressure someone. You don't have to run an advocacy campaign. You don't have to go to protests. You just get to decide. In many ways, it's the most direct way to make progress.”
Lewis, in conversation with Krishnan and Litman at the National Run for Office Day event, has a similar perspective: “Think about what you’re upset about.”
Ossé, who’s 25, ran for the city council for exactly that reason, after he stood on the front lines of the Black Lives Matter Movement in 2020. He tells Teen Vogue that after the murder of George Floyd, he joined protests in New York City, advocating for policing reform and the reallocation of funds for police departments. “And when I saw that my city council member did not fully represent the views that I had, and continue to have to this day, I decided to run for office at the age of 22," he explains, "to make my wants become a reality.”
Ossé continues, “That obviously shaped a lot of my politics, outside of just policing, in the form of housing and education and infrastructure. And being that the New York City Council is responsible for negotiating [the budget]... I really wanted my voice and the voice of my generation to be in the room.”
Ossé emphasizes the importance of bringing one’s lived experiences — which young candidates have a plethora of despite not having been around as long as their older counterparts — to the table. “It was hard for me to find an apartment within my own city council district, and I [try] to bring that story around and through me when I advocate and try to legislate around housing,” he says.
Ossé also has a warning — and advice — for anyone looking to follow in his footsteps. Running at a young age wasn’t always easy, he admits. “There were times where I would knock on doors and, you know, people would laugh at my face and say that I look too young or like a baby or that I was too green for this job. I think my appearance, as well as my age and lack of traditional experience — as many people pitched it to be — was an obstacle that I think many people attempted to put in my line to get here,” he explains. “But I always thought that all of those qualities of mine were and still are an advantage within not only running for office but governing as well.”
As for that advice, Ossé's biggest tip for the next generation of aspiring elected officials is that potential candidates should make sure they’re doing it “for the right reason,” which he says is for “the betterment of your community.”
“What are you doing around your neighborhood? What's your vision and how is it different from those who have led your community before?” Ossé asks. “If you're considering a run for office, bring something new to the table, right? Bring a level of change that people deserve, and that will progress your community forward.”
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