Young voters are taking this election seriously

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - Two months ago April Hardin hadn't given much thought to the presidential election.

She was preparing for her first semester of college _ picking classes, preparing for dorm life, saving money. Politics didn't factor into her world. She'd heard of Barack Obama, but she didn't know much about him or John McCain.

She just didn't feel connected to the campaign at all. Until one day while flipping channels she heard two words: financial aid.

It was Michelle Obama on television talking about financial relief for college students. Financial aid is very important to April, a freshman at Missouri Western State University.

Before then, she didn't realize that the president had much to do with that. She wasn't even registered to vote.

"I wasn't even interested in the election," says April, 18. "Now I know whoever gets elected will have a major impact over the next four years of my life at school."

She was worried that it was too late for her to exercise her right to vote. She called her sister, frantic. But the deadline to register for voting remains ahead: Oct. 8 in Missouri and Oct. 20 in Kansas.

Two weeks ago, while walking back to her room from the cafeteria, April saw a voter registration drive and signed up.

"I want to be included," she says about the upcoming Election Day. "And I want to know what's going on."

Even though it was Michelle Obama who caught her attention, that doesn't mean she's sold on Barack Obama. She says she's now trying to learn more about the issues and the people involved.

"I realize I need to listen to both sides and get to know more about both candidates," she says.

"Education and financial aid are important to me. I have to make sure I know why I am voting for the person I choose, and who they are before I make a choice."

Joe Sims didn't care about politics either. There wasn't a big reason. He says it just didn't appeal to him. Then he turned 18 in August and gained the power to vote. He started paying attention.

His classmates started learning more, too. He says it's not something they sit around talking about, but there's an undertone.

"You can feel it, we're thinking about it," says Joe, a senior at Olathe Northwest High School.

Education, the war, economic turnaround and better health care are some of the things on Joe's mind. He thinks that the war was unjustified and that America went to Iraq without a plan.

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He has been tuning in to the speeches and making himself familiar with the candidates to see who caters to the changes he wants to see. He says it's more involved than he realized.

"I'm learning a lot," says Joe, who is leaning toward Obama. "There are a lot more issues at hand and they go further in-depth than I thought they could. I just thought it was as simple as do you want to be Republican or Democrat, red or blue, nothing else."

Now that he sees what goes into the campaign, Joe says, learning more about the candidates has made him feel like his vote is going to really count toward something big.

"I have never really anticipated an election before," he says. "I'm really excited. It's always been the same old stuff, year after year, and there's going to be a change."

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(To reach Jenee Osterheldt, call 816-234-4380 or e-mail josterheldt@kcstar.com.)

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© 2008, The Kansas City Star.