In the abstract, it might seem that we should be happy about this historic voter turnout. And in a certain sense, we should be. Our democratic republic requires citizen action and participation. We should celebrate Americans going out into the public square and exercising their constitutional right to vote—and even to assemble and demonstrate. Yet Americans across the political spectrum can also agree that 2020’s historic voter turnout does not indicate historic civic health. Indeed, only 21 percent of Americans now believe that America is on the right track.
Those of us who are interested in civic education and civic health need to realize that mere metrics of participation do not directly equate with the health of our democratic republic. If Americans all decided to stop voting and to disengage from their communities, our form of government and our way of life would wither away and die. But action alone is not enough.
If our experiment in self-government is to continue, our citizenry must be thoughtful and informed—not just engaged. As America prepares to celebrate her 250th birthday less than three years from now, we must ensure our citizenry understands how our government functions and knows of the particular history and circumstances that brought forth the unique ideals our country was founded to uphold.
The findings of a recent report by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars should shock us into reprioritizing civic education. According to the report, only 48 percent of young people plan to vote in the 2024 general election, compared to 68 percent of the general population. At the same time, a mere 40 percent of young people are able to correctly answer one out of four standard civics questions—and only 4 percent of respondents got all four questions right.