This January, Governer Phil Murphy signed the New Voter Empowerment Act into law in New Jersey, which allowed 17-year-olds who turn 18 by the general election to vote in state primaries for the first time, as long as they register to vote by May 12. Andrew Zwicker, the Senator for the legislative district LD-16, which includes Princeton, sponsored this law.
“It’s the first bill that I ever wrote … and it took almost a decade before it got signed into law,” said Zwicker. “It’s your world. The decisions that I make in the legislature right now, whether it is around economic policy, climate change, housing, [or] affordability, they’re not going to magically change in 10 years. So having your voice heard by folks like me is incredibly important.”
This law expands participation for primary elections, which determines the party nominees for the general election in November.
“It’s a unique opportunity for young people to have their voices heard,” said executive board member and elections chair of the Princeton Community Democratic Organization Rachel Grainger. “The primary election is an opportunity to decide who ends up on the general ballot. So this gives young people more of a voice in that process.”
Zwicker encourages youth to participate in democratic processes, even if they have not turned 17 yet. Whether it is by volunteering in a campaign, attending a council meeting, or getting involved on a local municipality level, there are multiple ways to connect with our political representatives.
“Being civically engaged and civically minded is really important. A lot of people don’t realize that state local governments have a much more direct impact on people’s lives, especially young people’s education policy,” said History and Government and Politics teacher Timothy Campbell.
However, despite the expansion of voting abilities to youth, only 32 votes were cast by 17-year-olds during New Jersey’s 11th congressional district special election this April. Due to the new bill, there are a variety of factors that can affect voting participation, including weather, ballot resources, and information about voting requirements. Campbell believes that these shortcomings can be fixed with a required government class for all high schoolers.
“Not every 17-year-old knows about the registration process. Knowing the requirements [is] especially important,” said Campbell. “Seniors graduate from here and go to college … outside of their home district, they have to know they have a ballot registration process … that’s something that you could learn if a government class was mandatory before graduation.”
At PHS specifically, students can access resources and programs that help them learn about and get involved with the voting registration and election process. The school encourages students to join political clubs, while integrating civics lessons into the curriculum, educating them about elections through Student Council voting, and sending reminders about voting deadlines. Carina He ’26 recalls the opportunities she has had throughout school involving civic education.
“I remember [that] in middle school we did mock debates about social issues, and you continue to do similar critical thinking [in high school] where you learn both about the history of America’s election cycles and voting issues while also forming your own opinions and worldview,” said He.
Eleanor Nayden ’26, a senior who recently registered to vote, corroborated that young people are capable of shifting the current state of partisan politics.
“What’s needed right now in the very polarized political situation, is to do your research on the different people that are in politics, so that you’re not voting for ideals, but people that represent you and your desires and how you want to see the country move forward,” said Nayden.
Zwicker urged people to not feel discouraged over the political environment and instead use the power they have as members of a democratic society to make the change they want to see.
“The issue I see is people feel very discouraged given the chaos coming out of Washington and feel like their vote doesn’t matter,” said Zwicker. “But it’s the opposite because if we don’t [participate], we end up with elected officials who don’t share our values.”