At a virtual gathering, an in-person gathering, and through an informal online survey, we asked young people, ranging in age from 14 to 24, questions such as whether they would be heading to the polls, what issues they care about, and what they would like to see candidates for elected office do for them. These are answers from people we surveyed who were ages 18-24.
Are you voting? Why or why not?
Yes. It’s a privilege that I’m able to play a part in who I want to lead my future, and I plan on taking full advantage of that. — Winter Galloway
Yes. Because I believe it is important to be a part of the process. — Chase Swoope
No. Joe Biden is funding a genocide in Gaza currently through his policies, and inflation doesn’t seem to be improving. The Republicans are actual fascists and Dems want to have fascism without showing their true colors. — Alex
Yes. Because I want public transportation, subways, more lines, more consistent buses. — Yousef Miller
Only local elections. There’s no fixing the system with voting except for locally. — Erica Sweitzer
I want to, but I don’t feel like I can make a moral choice based on the candidates. I’m tired of the “lesser of two evils” dichotomy. I wish there was someone who was actually worthy of being a leader or representative of this city, state, and country. — Kamaria
Yes. I believe your vote can make a difference. — Justice Georgie
Yes. I really care about politics and voting for people who will implement policies that align with my values. — Sita Kottilil
What questions do you want candidates to answer?
How do they plan to stop AI from taking away employment for some careers? — Ashley David
Have you or will you use your platform to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, and, if elected, do you pledge to end the fiscal support and awarding of contracts to companies that support the Israeli regime, such as NICE Systems and Cellebrite? Do you support overdose prevention sites in Baltimore? If elected, what measures will you take to shrink, not grow, the Baltimore Police Department’s budget? How will you stand up to proposed transportation budget cuts at the state level to ensure that Baltimoreans have increased access to reliable transit options, not less? What is your stance on Johns Hopkins creating an armed private police force, despite five years of documented community opposition? — Anna Brackett
Why is Baltimore City spending money on useless projects like funding another police training facility when there are core issues that actually need that money? Baltimore is a multicultural, artistic city, but unfortunately, that is overshadowed by the vacant housing, homelessness, and guns. — Annie Allan
What are you gonna do differently? — Paris
What do you think realistically can be done about crime in Baltimore in the time span of your term? — Kayla Ray
How are you responding to the needs of your constituents? What’s your top priorities and do you have the support or a plan to make it happen? — Kyra McDonnell
Have you done a qualitative analysis on our community and identified the specific issues we’re facing? What is your plan to realistically address them? — DeJah-Renee Deanda
Will you allow schools to teach actual history and actual science regardless of pressure from fringe religious movements? Will you allow transgender students to participate in athletics and other school-sanctioned activities? Will you support decriminalizing drugs and promoting harm reduction practices? Do you support Palestinians and their rights to self-determination and freedom of movement? Do you support bus, train, and bicycle infrastructure? How do you plan to address the climate crisis on a state and local level? — Emily Nielson
What issues are most important to you?
Housing, transportation, crime, violence, and safety. — Thomas Brown
I have some strong opinions on particularly housing and managing crime, in ways that I disagree with the status quo (e.g. I’m opposed to curfews and limiting spaces for where young people can gather, and limited zoning laws restricting housing supply and availability). — Keonte Sampson
Youth activities and opportunities, fine arts. — Isaiah
School and education, crime, violence and safety, youth mental health, racial justice. — Jay Allen
Youth activities and opportunities, housing, transportation, school and education, crime, violence and safety, job and career opportunities, climate change, youth mental health, racial justice. — Deshaun
School and education, climate change, racial justice. — Fiona
Youth activities and opportunities, housing, transportation, school and education, crime, violence and safety, job and career opportunities, climate change, youth mental health, racial justice. — Dance Prescott
Crime, violence and safety, climate change, racial justice. — Jai Shields
Help fix the problems within the city. — Ataeviya Dilworth
Violence, limited job opportunities for minorities. — Sierra Brooks
Safety within the city, proper representation, and listening to the community’s outcry for support of Gaza and the end of all genocides. — Sade Morris
Job equity and equality. — Malcolm Swayne
Real change. Foster real lasting opportunities for the citizens of Baltimore. — Andrew
Trans rights are very important to me. Specifically protecting trans youth. — Connor McAlister
I want to see candidates address the housing crisis and food deserts in Baltimore. As someone who does not drive, I’m forced to live in a more expensive area of the city to be able to walk to my local grocery store, and even then, it takes me 30 minutes to do so without the added weight of groceries. — Mikaelle Mathurin
Candidates must be pro-Palestine. Pro-Palestinian resistance. Pro-all land back. Against Zionism in all forms. — Gaiita
Other comments
A lot of candidates make promises of change but aren’t able to fully follow through. — Jalen Jones
Our generation wants to see an immediate ceasefire, an end to all U.S. aid to Israel, immediate entry of humanitarian aid to Palestine, and landback initiatives. Palestine by far is the most pressing issue for so many young voters I know. — Dalila Ives
Many… issues can be addressed simply by ensuring that everyone has their basic needs met and provided for. Crime would go down in environments where people do not have to worry about when their next meal is or if they’ll have a roof over their heads. — Anonymous
The reason why youth crime has gone up is because we don’t have anything to do. The main things that youth today in Baltimore City need are job opportunities. Giving us something to do while earning money could decrease the crime rate within youth in Baltimore City. — Myles Michelin
Studies have shown that access to transportation is the number one way to increase social mobility, and transportation remains the largest share of emissions. So many of the problems above — from job opportunities to education to racial justice — can be substantially improved by targeted investments in transportation. — Charlotte Murphy
I have a master’s degree in climate science and can’t afford my rent. I will never own a home. I have a full-time job and two part-time jobs. It’s unacceptable that I have to add up my groceries at the store and put things back if I go over my budget. My partner and I constantly have to discuss not being with one another, not because the relationship is bad, but because we each may need to move back in with our parents, putting us on opposite ends of the country. Regarding climate change, I didn’t get my degree because it sounded like fun, I got it out of pure necessity to be part of addressing this global crisis. So many young folks are jaded with this system, so I understand completely those who choose not to engage in the democratic process. Why would we participate when no one is actively making decisions to improve our lives? — Taryn Bell
