夜秀直播

Politics is in Quentin Col贸n Roosevelt鈥檚 blood, literally. He isn鈥檛 just interested in public service; he鈥檚 the great-great-great-grandson of Theodore Roosevelt, the iconic cartoonish statesman who served as the 26th President of the United States. No wonder he鈥檚 looking to study public policy in college and has already become involved in electoral politics in Washington, D.C.

At just 18 years old, Col贸n Roosevelt sits on the hyper-local Advisory Neighborhood Commission 3D03, which covers the Spring Valley region just west of American University. Just like his ancestor 鈥� who remains the youngest person in history to assume the presidency at 42 鈥� he made history in November as the youngest elected ANC commissioner in the District鈥檚 history.聽

鈥淚 want to be the change I want to see in the world,鈥� Col贸n Roosevelt said. 鈥淚 think we definitely need more young people involved right now. We have these octogenarians controlling everything; it鈥檚 unbelievable.鈥�

While Col贸n Roosevelt slightly exaggerates the degree to which elected officials are older than the average person, his characterization of American political society is largely accurate. The average age of a United States senator is 65, while governors are only slightly younger, on average, at 62. In the United States House of Representatives, the average age of members is 58.聽

鈥淭hey鈥檙e not going to be living for much longer,鈥� Col贸n Roosevelt added of the country鈥檚 older elected officials. 鈥淯nfortunately, we are going to have to deal with the consequences of their actions and inactions.鈥�

Col贸n Roosevelt, and some of his youthful contemporaries, are trying to change that narrative. In fact, Maxwell Frost 鈥� who is slated to become the first Gen Z member of Congress when he is sworn in on Jan. 3 鈥斅爏et up a 30-something-person group chat on Twitter called 鈥淕en Z Wave鈥� for up-and-coming young elected officials, including Col贸n Roosevelt.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a really nice group,鈥� Col贸n Roosevelt said. 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 really nice to each other.鈥�

Two municipal sources told 夜秀直播 that the D.C. Board of Elections does not keep records of ANC commissioner ages; the Virginia House of Delegates likewise does not require candidates for office to submit their ages since the minimum age for serving in the legislature is 18, which is the voting age.聽

In fact, Col贸n Roosevelt was not even 18 years old when it came time to vote in the 2022 primary elections, but he was permitted to cast a ballot since he would be of voting age by the time the general election rolled around.聽

Recently, a member of Foggy Bottom鈥檚 ANC 鈥� a George Washington University student named Margaret McDonald 鈥� resigned in August citing academic commitments, according to the commission鈥檚 chair, Joel Causey. Since she is no longer elected, McDonald could not be contacted for comment.聽

In any event, youth is creeping into elected office, whether at the local or state level; alongside Col贸n Roosevelt, ANC 2E has , so too did ANC 3D, the region containing American University鈥檚 campus. 鈥斅爉any of whom come from activist and grassroots backgrounds 鈥� have assumed elected offices.

This youth is being embraced by some older members of the District鈥檚 political community, including commissioners in Col贸n Roosevelt鈥檚 ward.聽

鈥淵oung people have an energy and an altruism and an idealism that is vital and needed and hasn鈥檛 been jaded yet,鈥� said Peter Lynch, 37, a Ward 3 commissioner who teaches English at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Md.聽

Added 76-year-old commissioner Randy Speck of Chevy Chase DC, whose wife taught Lynch when he was kindergarten: 鈥淲e have a lot of young families, and I just think it would be useful to have that perspective on the commission.鈥�

Connie Flanagan, a professor emerita at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies youth political participation and civic engagement, said political networks 鈥� like the one with Roosevelt and Frost 鈥斅燼re key to helping young people get involved and successfully run campaigns.聽

鈥淚t has to be through networks that they make connections that teach them how to do it and support them in doing it,鈥� Flanagan said. 鈥淲hether you win or lose, you鈥檙e learning how the system works.鈥�

, youth voter turnout has been steadily increasing in recent years, with voters aged 18 to 29 generally breaking more for Democrats (55%) than Republicans (38%) in generic polling. Gen Z, which spans birth years from the late-90s to 2010, is expected to become a crucial voting bloc in upcoming elections.