by Ginger Voight

Created on: May 06, 2008   Last Updated: November 23, 2010

In a country where young adults often feel disenfranchised from the political process, the 2008 presidential election is poised to set traditional politics on its ear.

This landmark election year is the first in history where a woman and a person of color are creating excitement and hope for change. In fact, one could argue that would be the theme of this election year. It's the buzz word on everyone's lips. But what does it mean?

For minorities, it means being led by a person who looks like they do, and comes from a similar background with the same kinds of challenges.

For young women, it once again reinforces the belief that we are equal, we are important. We are more than a cover on a magazine.

For all of us it means that no matter where we come from or what we look like, we can be anything we want to be with the help of those who believe in us rather than picture perfect ideals.

What amazing messages to send - that America is only as valuable as her people, as unique and diverse as we are.

It stands to reason that inspirational message is reaching those who might have previously been apathetic to their government. And for good reason. We have been traditionally led by older, affluent, straight, white men. They created our laws, dictated our path, all the while pandering to those who are typically more active voters: older Americans.

Taking a page from former President (and sax player) Bill Clinton, our history making Democratic nominees are popping up from Saturday Night Live to Comedy Central's "The Daily Show". They seem to know that the voters who decided the 2000 and 2004 elections can only matched by those who typically do not vote at all - so no stone is left unturned, even utilizing social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace.

Simply put: voting has become the new "cool".

With endorsements such as Oprah, as well as famous younger actors and musicians, the Democratic nominees have created such a stir that US News & World Report predicted that young voters could put Obama or Clinton in the White House. "More than 5.7 million voters under the age of 30 have participated in the primaries and caucuses held thus far. That's a 109 percent increase from the last set of presidential primaries, according to Rock the Vote. And these are the primaries, where voter turnout is usually abysmal." - Nikki Schwab, March 13, 2008

If the trend holds, today's young Americans could take a real step in creating positive change for the country they ultimately leave the generations that follow.

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