'Sour-eyed' young Americans losing faith in Biden. Scare tactics can't motivate them| Opinion

Charlie Sabgir
·3 min read
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Members of Gen Z: We Want to Live and the CODE BLACK Health Equity Vigil rally on the steps of the Rhode Island State House. Racial justice, climate change and abortion are some of the key political issues for young people.
Members of Gen Z: We Want to Live and the CODE BLACK Health Equity Vigil rally on the steps of the Rhode Island State House. Racial justice, climate change and abortion are some of the key political issues for young people.

Charlie Sabgir is a rising third-year student at Georgetown University in its School of Foreign Service and was raised in New Albany, Ohio.

Democrats are staring down the barrel of a potential electoral bloodbath this November: record inflation, looming recession, and the historic midterm party swing all point to a likely red wave.

In Ohio, where new district maps earn an “F” from the Princeton Gerrymandering Project, the party is in danger of winning just two out of 15 House seats, on top of likely gubernatorial and Senate defeats.

For Democratic candidates to overcome the odds this fall, they must win back an electorate that is losing faith in President Joe Biden with each passing day: Gen Z.

President Joe Biden speaks during an event to celebrate the passage of the gun safety Bipartisan Safer Communities Act at the White House on Monday.
President Joe Biden speaks during an event to celebrate the passage of the gun safety Bipartisan Safer Communities Act at the White House on Monday.

The Biden Administration has earned the right to celebrate bipartisan gun reform; the bipartisan infrastructure bill; a record number of federal judges appointed, and more.

However, failure to make significant progress on climate change, abortion rights in a post-Roe world, and other meaningful issues for Gen Z has disillusioned many within this demographic and disincentivized turnout for the 2022 midterms.

Ohio Democrats must recognize this cynicism and respond by appealing to the hearts and minds of young voters.

More: Despite obstacles, young voters are 'raising hell' with historic early voting turnout

A good place to start is highlighting the Republican policies implemented at a state level over the past two years.

Since taking office, Gov. Mike DeWine has not only expanded concealed carry privileges, but he has also lowered the amount of training required for teachers to wield firearms to a mere 24 hours.

Charlie Sabgir is a rising third-year student at Georgetown University in its School of Foreign Service and was raised in New Albany, Ohio. His views are his own and do not represent his school
Charlie Sabgir is a rising third-year student at Georgetown University in its School of Foreign Service and was raised in New Albany, Ohio. His views are his own and do not represent his school

More: How to submit guest opinion columns to the Columbus Dispatch

Gov. DeWine’s policies are indicative of the Republican Party’s growing extremism and Ohio Dems must communicate to young voters that should the GOP grab control of both chambers in 2022, this is only the beginning. To drive home this point, Democrats can look no further than their competition this election cycle.

J.R. Majewski
J.R. Majewski

Take J.R. Majewski, the Republican candidate running to unseat Marcy Kaptur for Ohio's 9th congressional district.

Majewski was not only a participant at the Jan. 6 rally and a proponent of “The Big Lie,” but also an advocate for secession after the 2020 election.

More: Young voters could be imposing force

Currently, he’s in a toss-up to unseat the longest-serving woman in Congress. Majewski is not an anomaly; rather, he is an embodiment of today’s GOP.

Birth control restrictions, same-sex marriage bans, and more are on the table should the GOP take control of Congress in 2022, and Ohio Democrats must not sugar-coat the haunting reality of what’s at stake.

Equality for immigrants and LGBTQ rights were key issues that determined this first-time Gen Z voter choosing Joe Biden. Now, the generation is becoming disillusioned with the president.
Equality for immigrants and LGBTQ rights were key issues that determined this first-time Gen Z voter choosing Joe Biden. Now, the generation is becoming disillusioned with the president.

Scare tactics won’t be enough to motivate young voters, however.

For Democratic candidates, the larger challenge over the coming months will be balancing this message out with the most valuable emotion in politics: hope.

For the Bernie-supporting college student who’s fed up with the Democratic National Committee,  Kaptur must let him or her know that she could be the difference between Republicans overturning the 2024 presidential election or not, the difference between a national abortion ban or not.

Supporters look on as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders on March 8, 2020 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Cortez has become a Democratic Party favorite among millennials and Gen Z.
Supporters look on as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders on March 8, 2020 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Cortez has become a Democratic Party favorite among millennials and Gen Z.

For Tim Ryan, he must let them know that he will be the vote to end the filibuster and codify Roe, the "yes" needed to swear in the next Supreme Court justice; for Nan Whaley, that she will be the difference between teachers possessing a pistol in the classroom or not.

More: Biden fares almost as well with young voters as Sanders in matchup vs. Trump, poll finds

Ohio Democrats have both a duty and an opportunity to reignite the emotion that drove a record number of young voters to the polls in 2020, which means letting voters know not only the consequences of a Republican-controlled Congress, but the tangible impacts that winning their races will have.

These candidates must prove to a sour-eyed Gen Z which party has their interests in mind and which party seeks to move the country backward.

Charlie Sabgir is a rising third-year student at Georgetown University in its School of Foreign Service and was raised in New Albany, Ohio.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Opinion: What will it take for Democrats to win Generation Z voters?