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It’s time to address the elephant in the room. The GOP has a problem. It’s not Mitch McConnell. It’s not Adam Kinzinger. It’s not Liz Cheney. It’s not even Mitt Romney. It’s the youth vote. Yes, while all of those people are an embarrassment to the party, the GOP’s problem at hand that nobody wants to address is our lack of winning the youth vote.


Now, I know what some of you might be thinking. “Why should we care about the youth vote?”. I’ll tell you why. The youth vote is the future of this country and if we want to ensure that the future is bright, we need to make sure that young people are a part of the party.


My generation is constantly looking for a cause. A cause to champion, a cause to rally around, a cause to put in their Instagram bios. If the GOP wants to have a conversation with Millennials and Generation Z, they have to understand this and be open to discussing hot topics pertinent to young voters. Yes, I’m talking about climate change, abortion, marriage, and other social issues. For too long, Republicans have walked the tightrope on topics significant to young people. It’s past time for the GOP to have a hard stance on relevant concerns to young voters. But don’t hear me say that we as Republicans need to compromise our conservative position on these issues. We do not need to be like the Democrats to win young voters. By saying that we need to have a dialogue with my generation if we ever want to win their vote does not mean we need to buckle our stance. We simply need to have a position laid out and stop playing this gray area game, letting the Left dominate all conversations on the issues because the Right is too afraid to discuss them.


So, what can the GOP do to win the youth vote? First, we have to be honest with ourselves. We need to acknowledge that the party has lost touch with my generation and that we must change that.


In the 2020 presidential election, for example, Joe Biden won the youth vote by a margin of nearly 20%. In the recent midterm elections, the majority of voters under the age of 41, classified as Millennials and Generation Z, voted for Democrats.


The 2022 midterms had the second-highest youth voter turnout in almost three decades, with 27% of registered youth voters (ages 18-29). 20% turnout for youth voters has become a pattern in midterm elections since the 1990s. That pattern was broken in 2018 when over 30% of registered young voters showed up at the ballot box.


According to an exit poll conducted by Edison Research, 63% of young voters (ages 18-29) voted for Democrats for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022 and only 35% voted for Republicans. We saw almost identical margins in 2020 when 62% of young voters voted for Democrats and 32% voted for Republicans.


This isn’t anything crazy or unexpected. For decades, the Democrats have had a monopoly on the youth vote, but that monopoly has significantly expanded over the past few decades.


The problem for Republicans isn’t necessarily youth vote turnout, although that is always something that can be higher and we should continue to encourage, but it seems to be who young people are actually voting for when they get to the ballot box. If Republicans want to win future elections, we must find a way to connect with young voters and win their support.


I get it, it sounds cool to be a Democrat. They dangle emotions and free things in front of my generation and expect us to vote blue up and down the ticket, and for the most part, over the years, we have.


The GOP is known as the Grand Old Party. We’re widely categorized as the party of old white guys, but the party is changing.


In the House, every Republican seat flipped in 2020 was won by a woman or a minority, and the GOP continued that success when they took back the majority in the House in 2022. When the 118th Congress was sworn in, we saw an incredibly young and diverse Republican caucus.


Over in the Senate, Alabama Republicans elected Katie Britt to the U.S. Senate, making her the youngest elected female Republican Senator in U.S. history and the only mom in the Senate GOP with school-age children.


Over the past few years, we have seen a rise of conservatives standing up and speaking out, and in some cases even running for office, that are breaking the mold of the “stereotypical” Republican. Young people today are more diverse than ever before, and they want to see a party that reflects that diversity.


The Republican Party must demonstrate that they are in touch with the concerns and priorities of young voters, which means the GOP should focus on building a strong online presence and engaging with young voters through social media platforms.


Young people are increasingly turning to social media to get their news and information, and the party should be using these platforms to connect with them and build support. This means creating appealing content and using social media influencers to reach out to young voters. The GOP needs to be where my generation is, and they need to be speaking our language.


You would think this would be a top concern of the leadership at the RNC, but unfortunately, it’s not.


The DNC has a team of youth coordinators targeting my generation. In 2005, they assembled a “Youth Council” with members in every state and divided regions across the country with individual captains. In every election since 2005, according to Tisch College, Democrats have grown the gap between Republican youth voters by over 30%.


Sure, Conservatives have incredible organizations like Turning Point USA doing work across the country on college campuses to help educate and assemble young Republicans, but if it wasn’t for Charlie Kirk, none of this work would be done. The RNC shouldn’t be solely relying on Turning Point USA to organize youth voters - that’s their job!


It’s past time for the RNC to seek youth input. Think about it this way; when you have an older church that doesn’t necessarily put an emphasis on youth engagement and has a majority elderly congregation, the church eventually dies, because the congregation dies. The churches that flourish the most have a thriving youth group and involve church members of all ages, from newborns to senior citizens. That is what the RNC must do, or like elderly churches, it will die. The RNC must establish a youth advisory council to seek input from my generation and put together a platform for the future, not just for the next convention. If the RNC, and Republican Party as a whole, invests in my generation, it will pay off.


Winning the youth vote is essential for the GOP, and should be a main focus of the RNC, if it wants to be successful in future elections. I understand that Republicans are frustrated with recent election losses, but I firmly believe the youth vote is the area where the GOP is lacking, and focusing on it is the key to winning future elections.


I know I’m only 16 years old, but if the Republican Party continues to overlook my generation, it might not still be here when it’s time for my generation to take charge. It's not going to be easy breaking the Democrats’ monopoly, but winning the youth vote is necessary to ensure a bright future for the party.

 

Brilyn Hollyhand is a 16-year-old Conservative Commentator and the Founder and Editor in Chief of The Truth Gazette, a conservative news service fighting back against the Fake News Media!


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We’re less than 24 hours away from polls opening for the most crucial midterm election of our lives. For the past two years, your TV screens have been filled with cheesy politicians begging for your votes in ads that only DC elites think are funny, your yards have been filled with campaign signs telling your neighbors who you support making it easy to see who to blame for inflation and high gas prices, and conversations have centered around the latest political back-and-forth in swing states across the country. Tomorrow, that all ends.


I think Republicans will easily win the House by gaining 25-30 seats, retiring Nancy Pelosi as House Speaker once and for all, and are in a good position to take the majority in the Senate as well. I’ll be closely watching the Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and New Hampshire Senate races because I believe those will be the closest. I think we’ll see the tightest margins in Pennsylvania. I’m not as concerned about Georgia as Herschel continues to rise in the polls, but I think the final result will be neck and neck as well as in states like Arizona, New Hampshire, and Nevada. The best scenario for Republicans with the toss-up races is winning Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Nevada - giving Republicans a majority of 53 seats and the Democrats a minority of 47 seats. That is not impossible at all. In fact, I think it is very possible, but that would mean Republicans would have to pick up every single toss-up seat and not lose any other seats.


The focus over the past two years has mostly been on federal races, but 2020 (through COVID lockdowns and election issues) reminded us of the importance of statewide offices as well. We saw how powerful Governors were during COVID when you had people like Gretchen Whitmer and Andrew Cuomo impose draconian lockdowns on their states or the opposite with Kristi Noem and Ron DeSantis. A perfect example of how important Lieutenant Governors are is Kathy Hochul in New York. New Yorkers are stuck with their un-elected Governor right now, ignoring rampant crime because she is now their state defacto-Governor after Cuomo resigned. We saw how powerful Secretary of States were after November 8, 2020, when there were serious concerns with election integrity, and it was up to them and their offices to investigate it. And finally, offices like Attorney General can be overlooked in election cycles, but Roe v. Wade was overturned because of the Dobbs v. Jackson case led by Mississippi’s Attorney General Lynn Fitch. So tomorrow, vote Republican up and down the ballot!


You can complain about inflation, gas prices, the border, and rampant crime all you want, but you can’t change anything unless you vote. Bring at least 5 people with you to the polls. Bring your siblings. Bring your parents. Bring your friends. Bring your coworkers. Bring your Sunday School class. Bring your Saturday morning coffee group. Don’t waste this opportunity. Ensure that when the clock strikes 7:00 pm, and polls close, you have done everything in your power to make sure our country gets back on the right track. Republicans are in a position to have a big night, but that will only be possible if everybody gets out and votes! We can not get cocky!


Vote like your country depends on it. Because it does.


Vote like your freedom depends on it. Because it does.


Vote like you and your family’s future depends on it. Because it does.


If you don’t know where your polling place is, go to www.vote.org/polling-place-locator. Polls will open at 7:00 am and will stay open until 7:00 pm. Lines should not be as long as the Presidential Election in 2020, but prepare to wait a little bit anyways just to be safe! Also, stay in line! If you are in line by 7:00 pm, you still get to vote! And finally, if you see something, say something! Call your Secretary of State’s office if you see anything concerning that could threaten election integrity! Find your state’s Secretary of State’s phone number at www.e-secretaryofstate.com.


My closing pitch is this: we can argue over the issues all day, but for years, Democrats have told us that if they have full control of the government, “everything will be better”. That was proven to be a blatant lie. Democrats have had control of the House, the Senate, and The White House for two years now - look where our country is. Crime, inflation, gas prices, and the border are all topics that will be on the minds of voters when they go to vote tomorrow.


Go Save America!


Vote tomorrow.

 

Brilyn Hollyhand is a 16-year-old Conservative Commentator and the Founder and Editor in Chief of The Truth Gazette, a conservative news service fighting back against the Fake News Media!


Follow The Truth Gazette on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, GETTR, and Truth Social for more! Please share this article on your social media pages using the buttons below.




*Exclusive op-ed published through Human Events: https://humanevents.com/2022/09/02/what-the-gop-needs-to-do-to-win-in-november/


I feel like every conversation I’ve had lately has been people asking me if Republicans can win in November, so I decided to sit down and write an article about it. I’m not here to answer the prediction question of “will Republicans take the majority in Congress”, but I am here to lay out a plan of how Republicans can take the majority. At the beginning of the year, or even at the beginning of the summer, if somebody emailed me an article with this title I would’ve said that it was crazy because there was no doubt in my mind Republicans would sweep the country in November. Now, don’t get me wrong - this is not a doomsday message. I still believe Republicans are slated to take the majority in the House and Senate in November, and win in several other important statewide races across the country. All in all, at this time, I still believe that November will be good for Republicans, but we have to work for it.


At the beginning of this year, the original outlook on the midterms was that it would fall into our laps because of how poor of a job Joe Biden has done. That’s true, but it’s no longer a guarantee. In the eyes of the Biden administration and the DNC, they’ve had a good summer. It’s not the Republicans fault, and on the flip side, it’s also not the Democrats fault. It’s not like they outworked us, it’s simply just the current state of politics. Roe v. Wade being overturned energized their radical base, and Biden handing out $10,000 of student loan forgiveness is basically just handing voters a $10,000 stimulus check as a gift just weeks before an election. Long story short, the political scene has changed in just a matter of weeks.


In 1994, the first midterm election of Bill Clinton’s presidency, House Republican leadership wanted to develop a plan to take the majority in Congress. Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey got together, and with the help of policy ideas from groups like the Heritage Foundation and text from Reagan’s 1985 State of the Union, they wrote a Contract with America. That contract laid out the plan for what Republicans would do if voters elected them to the majority. It worked. Now, 28 years later, releasing a Contract with America 2.0 as soon as possible is the best strategy to help Republicans in November! It would be great to see the House GOP and Senate GOP leaders hold an event and unveil it together and pledge to do x y and z if elected to the majority! They could even have the original Contract with American author, Newt Gingrich, back to advise on the contract, and organizations like the Heritage Foundation are still around to offer some of the most articulate individuals in conservative politics to help construct one of the most important documents to set our country back on track.


We all talk about how we want Republicans to take back the majority in Congress in November, but there is not enough talk about why. Why do we want voters to go to the polls and vote for Republicans so that they can take back the majority in Congress in November? Well, because our country is at stake. First and foremost we have to put our country back on track because it has been derailed by Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, and Chuck Schumer. A Republican Majority must work on legislation to reopen our pipelines and put America back on the path to being energy independent again. When this goes into place, Americans will finally see gas prices go down substantially. Then, they must fund the Border Patrol which is incredibly understaffed and the House and Senate must immediately pass legislation to unfreeze the construction of the border wall. This will stop the current flow of millions of illegal migrants that have poured into our country since Joe Biden has taken office. After that, lawlessness must be addressed. A law and order agenda must be a priority across the country that can be presented at the federal level by Congress. We can stop sending billions to Ukraine and use that money to fund the border and police across the country. Republicans can also work on investigating people like Hunter Biden and Dr. Fauci!


So the Contract with America 2.0 can be simple: If elected to the majority, Republicans in Congress will cut spending, secure our border, make America energy independent again, address lawlessness, and open committees to investigate political elites who have gotten away with just about anything they want under Biden. Kevin McCarthy, House Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader, Elise Stefanik, House Republican Conference Chair, and Rick Scott, Senate Republican Conference Chair, should be coordinating with Ronna McDaniel, GOP Chairwoman, and the rest of the Republican National Committee every single day leading up to the midterms to focus on putting this agenda together and distributing it across the country. It’s a simple strategy, and if done right, can save this country, elect Republicans to the majority in November, and set America back on the track of success!

 

Brilyn Hollyhand is a 16-year-old Conservative Commentator and the Founder and Editor in Chief of The Truth Gazette, a conservative news service fighting back against the Fake News Media!


Follow The Truth Gazette on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, GETTR, and Truth Social for more! Please share this article on your social media pages using the buttons below.

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