Democracy is at the root of the United States’ government and culture, but its presence seems to be waning. COVID-19, election season and the impending threat of war are all major events that definitely contradict the idea of the U.S. being a nation full of democracy and dreams.

One common threat in our country is the presence of polarization and division. No matter the era of history, U.S. citizens have been divided over politics.

According to a Gallup poll, satisfaction with our country at the beginning of 2022 only rose from 39% to 41% from last year. Under Trump, the satisfaction fell at 45%—just 4% more than the current rate.

The results from these polls give the impression that over half our country is dissatisfied with the state of our union as it stands today.

At The News, we believe that the divide in the United States is not easily solvable. 

Democracy in the U.S. is important to our citizens because it offers choices. Despite the positivity of choices, they often lead to division that is increasing day-by-day. Division and polarization lead to unhappier Americans and the idea that everyone has to “pick a side” when sometimes it isn’t that simple.

Everyday citizens often don’t feel that they have the proper knowledge on certain topics to choose who to support at the polls. Topics like abortion, gun rights, healthcare and other issues are often hot topics during election season, but many voters don’t even understand why they are voting in favor of or against these issues.

Policies like these will continue to generate a divide in the U.S. because so many people are passionate about these issues whether positive or negative. The problem lies in the passion that exists on both sides of the spectrum, leading to heavy polarization. Since everyone is convinced that their opinion is the only right one, no one will ever be truly satisfied with who is elected.

At The News, we also believe there is a lack of political involvement in the United States.

Citizens can certainly advocate for change. Political involvement in the last election was higher than we had seen as a nation in several years, with the voter turnout setting a record for most voters in the last century. Despite this record-breaking involvement, many large groups are unwilling to vote and become involved because they believe their vote will not count.

Although democratic voters were in support of President Biden on election day, they soon changed their voices of support. At first there was a sense of happiness because of the incoming changes proposed by President Biden such as climate change legislation, increased minimum wage, and free college tuition.

Many of these happy voters quickly became unsatisfied when they realized that some of the changes were not coming at all.

Younger voters feel that they have enough education to participate in politics, but many feel that they aren’t being heard or represented. According to a poll by Zogby International, 33.6% of 18-24 year olds in the U.S. feel politicians do not pay enough attention to young peoples’ concerns.

Many people within this age bracket tend to feel unsupported by the politicians representing them, and we should when even Kentucky itself is being represented in the United States Senate by Mitch McConnell. Sen. McConnell is 80 years old and certainly does not have viewpoints that reflect 18-24 year olds struggling to pay for college or own their first home.

While there is not one concrete answer to the dilemma of lack of satisfaction in the U.S., several actions could be taken to help move us in the right direction.

One major change would have to be the allowance of younger people to have more of a platform. Being represented by older white men is no longer satisfactory when so many young voters are seeking representation that is not being given to them. As younger voters, we could begin groups to better understand the issues important to us and voice concern about the policies and issues we care about.

Another way to increase satisfaction is to hold politicians accountable. Obviously a global pandemic or a war threat are unplanned events in our history that can take precedence over smaller issues at the time, but a focus could still be put on the issues at hand. Important issues, could be addressed and organizations could be created as a way to fix this issue. Issues highlighted in a candidate’s platform should never take a backseat to smaller issues that citizens don’t see a need for.

No matter what actions are taken, one thing is definitely true; we are more divided as a country than we have been in several years. Polarization is detrimental to our society, and it is only getting worse and worse. We have to hold politicians accountable for the promises they are making. Without accountability, politicians will not listen to their voters and will continually disappoint us.