Next fall, Americans will collectively choose the next President of the United States. For most Massapequa High School seniors, it will be their first time that they are eligible to vote, which has increased interest in political issues. Often times, young adults believe that they are overlooked by candidates and the political establishment as uniformed and unlikely to exercise their right to vote. This is a fundamental misunderstanding, since young adults who— thanks to the easy accessibility of the news due to social media— are very aware of the issues and have strong opinions on them.  A few issues stand out as concerns of young adults— so what are these issues?

A trend is clearly visible among AP Government students at MHS.The issues that students listed as the most important in the upcoming election fell along party lines.

According to a survey conducted by The Chief, 29% of eighty three seniors identified with the political identity of “Democrat,” compared to 30% who identified as “Republican” and the 40% who made up either “Moderate,” “Unsure,” and “Independent.” Students who identified as Democrat saw loose campaign finance laws and low wages as the biggest issues. On the other hand, students who aligned themselves with conservatism and identified themselves as Republican responded that terrorism and the overall health of the economy are most important. While this does not show that the youngest voters of next year’s election are unified, it does show that they are well informed and ready to engage in healthy debate on the issues.

When asked what the most important issues were to them, conservative students most often listed terrorism, the economy, and First Amendment rights.

MHS senior Christian Buonamassa supports Donald Trump for President. “We are vulnerable to attacks from terrorists, which was proven by the recent tragedy in Paris,” Buonamassa said. “Terrorists might also take advantage of the Syrian refugee crisis to gain access to the country.”

This is a popular sentiment in the Republican Party, in which most candidates have made national security the foreground of their campaign. Businessman Donald Trump, who is the current front runner in the Republican primaries, said that the United States should not only bar all refugees, but all Muslims from entering the country.

“The sophistication of terrorists and their ability to utilize the internet is especially dangerous to America’s interests,” senior Thomas Clarke said. This clearly shows how the recent spike in terrorism is garnering opinions from even the youngest voters.

Campaign finance laws, low wages, increased college tuition, and climate change served as the top three issues amongst some of Massapequa’s more liberal seniors.

, “We have seen a loss of jobs and drop in wages due to poor trade agreements such as NAFTA, and we can’t risk that with another free trade agreement,” senior Brandon Vaglio, who supports Bernie Sanders, said.

Campaign finance laws are also a noted concern amongst MHS seniors. “Unlimited political funding is subtly diminishing the power of our democracy,” senior John Merz, who supports Bernie Sanders said. “If only a few people are controlling elections, that’s not a democracy, that’s an oligarchy or plutocracy.”

This suggests that younger liberals see current financial practices and agreements antithetical to the core values of American democracy, and thus consider them the most pressing issues of this election cycle. While this has been mentioned by Democratic candidates, it is certainly not in the foreground. Instead, they have focused more on social issues such as race relations, women’s rights and climate change.

The 2016 Presidential election has so far been unique thanks to the rise of controversial “outsider” candidates like Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. Seniors at Massapequa High School are fortunate in that they will be the youngest voters in this landmark election. With the ability to sway the election, young adults between the ages of eighteen and twenty five should not be overlooked.