Former President Barack Obama once said, “There’s no such thing as a vote that doesn’t matter,” and this is something that myself and many others agree with.

With 2020 being an election year, new voters find themselves ready to enter an entirely new ball game, the election process, and the class of 2021 now finds themselves in the batter’s box.

COVID-19 has caused the usual process of in-person voting to be changed to primarily mail-in voting and dropping off ballots at official ballot drop off locations. In the state of NJ, all registered voters were sent a mail-in ballot that could be sent back by mail or dropped off at a ballot box. There are also a limited number of locations open for in-person voting.

I caught up with 2 new voters, Emily Cozzone ’21 and Gillian McKenna ’21 to discuss how their voting process went, and what mail in voting meant to them.

“It was an honor to vote. After turning 18, it was really cool to be able to vote. This is such an important election and I’m so glad my voice will be heard and actually matter,” Cozzone said.

“It felt satisfactory to be able to vote. After living through a major social movement and a pandemic, putting that envelope in the box felt very real; no protest I attend or petition that I sign could’ve given me the feeling that dropping that envelope off did,” said McKenna.

Given the fact that our class is voting for the first time, our peers may have felt nervous or scared that they could incorrectly fill out the ballot.

“It wasn’t too nerve-wracking voting for the first time. I definitely paid more attention to everything going on in the political world this year. I wanted to be fully aware of the policies of the person I am voting for,” said Cozzone.

A common trend throughout the United States has definitely been a wider portion of the population paying attention to the political sphere. Given the fact that we have two presidential candidates that could not be more opposite provides a bit of research that those who normally don’t follow politics to have to do.

“As a young person, I understand what it’s like to not have your voice heard. Being brushed aside because you’re “too young” or “you won’t understand.” Use voting as a way to prove those people wrong. You have the knowledge and the ability to use your voice to change the world; it doesn’t matter who you vote for as long as you use your right to vote,” McKenna shared.

I think we can all agree that voting for the first time is a gratifying experience that is a right of passage into adulthood.

I encourage you to always stay politically informed as in this country, your voice, your vote and your opinions always matter.