This year’s election is important, and the new opinions of voters are changing. Judge senior Curtis Coudreaut, 18, reflected his views and opinions as a young, first-time voter on topics like how he views the future and needs in Salt Lake City, in Utah, and in the United States of America.
Coudreaut said that his greatest concern is emissions and climate change. This sentiment is shared among many other young voters. A 2021 global survey by the University of Bath showed that in the United States, around 54 percent of young voters report that they are afraid of climate change, but in other countries it is much higher, like 73 percent in Portugal.
“I’m probably most concerned about climate change action,” Coudreaut said, “some redoubled efforts to help decrease emissions in general.”
Coudreaut also said that he wants climate action in Salt Lake City, for the Great Salt Lake. It has been decreasing in size for years due to water management redirecting tributaries, and also global warming drying up more water. Toxic metals at the bottom of the lake would be very harmful if the lake were to dry up.
“For Salt Lake [City], [a priority is] probably trying to mitigate the decrease in the size of the Great Salt Lake, so that we can continue to live here, and that would also help smaller communities in Salt Lake City.” said Coudreaut.
The political world changes as more young people enter the voting system. Coudreaut said that younger voters would be more concerned with the environment and other people, and that older people should watch out for misinformation, especially with the advance of technology.
“With more younger people voting, there will probably be a lot of new ideas, and maybe more concerns about others and preserving the earth,” said Coudreaut. “I think older people should probably know that not everything they hear on the internet is factual, especially concerning the election, and candidates can say things that may not be true.”
Looking to the future, Coudreaut said that he is feeling pessimistic about the future of the world, and that many leaders are not turning out to be as helpful as advertised.
“I haven’t seen many people act in a progressive way,” said Coudreaut.
