A South Florida teen isn’t even old enough to vote, but it’s not stopping her from finding a creative way to get involved in important issues. 7’s Heather Walker has a look at her mission to get her generation ready to vote.
We know teenagers spend a lot of time on social media. Sixteen-year-old high school student Uma Hedge is one of them.
But she’s doing a lot more than just scrolling. She’s actually teaching her followers about politics.
Uma Hedge: “I wanna educate people. I want people to know, to be politically literate about the world we live in today. I still wanna learn so much about my country and the way it’s governed and things going on.”
Uma says she has always been interested in current events and political issues.
But, she noticed many of her friends and other teens either didn’t care, or they didn’t understand.
Uma Hedge: “I would watch these interviews and these debates, I’d realize, ‘Huh, I’m having trouble understanding this.’ Imagine how my peers who weren’t raised in this environment, imagine how they must feel.”
Uma wanted a way to help her friends understand current issues. She knew the best way to reach them was through social media.
Earlier this year, she created an initiative called Before the Ballot, which aims to educate teens on bipartisan issues, so they can be informed voters when they reach 18.
Uma Hedge: “I wanted to talk directly to my generation eye-to-eye and say, ‘Okay, look, these are the facts, this is what happened. You decide what issues are important,’ and then that’s how we form the bedrock. That’s important for us to start caring about politics and being literate because, eventually, it’s going to be our turn.”
Each week, Uma posts discussion videos about local and global current events on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
She also posts interviews with candidates running for office from Florida and around the country, regardless of political party.
Uma Hedge: “I’ve interviewed from one end of the spectrum to the other. I’ve loved all of them. I can’t say I’ve had an interview that I disliked because the biggest thing I’ve learned with Before the Ballot is that I can find a common thread with almost anyone.”
Before the Ballot has gained thousands of followers in just a few months.
Uma Hedge: “I’m shocked by all the love I’ve received personally. They’re like, ‘Wow, you’re amazing.’ My friends are texting me and they’re like, ‘You’re my source of news.'”
Uma says the positive response inspires her to keep working, especially as the nation prepares for the upcoming midterm election.
Uma Hedge: “I think seeing all this unfold from what I know now, having interviewed politicians, and having seen the background, the underside of it, I think it’s so much more interesting now.”
The interest will only grow.
While Uma can’t vote in this election, she will be old enough to cast her vote in the next presidential election.
Uma Hedge: “I can’t wait! I’m so ready.”
She wants her peers to feel just as excited about voting.
Uma Hedge: “We have the power to change the world and I don’t think enough of us have realized that yet. So I really hope with these videos, if I can make one, just one person go, ‘You know what, I can vote. You know what? I should vote, I should be involved in civic duty,’ then my mission’s been accomplished.”
In the meantime, she will keep working on Before the Ballot, and making sure she and her friends are ready to voice their choice when it’s their time.
Heather Walker, 7News.
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