I turned 18 years old at the end of my senior year of high school and registered to vote before I graduated. In the three years since, I have voted in every local, state and federal election. Only once each time, I promise.

I attend town meeting in Minot every year and participate in my school union’s budget meetings.

It is easy for me to stay involved because I am interested in the issues and because I take my civic responsibility seriously. Having said that, I realize I am not the norm. My friends and I talk about the issues and most of them are pretty well informed, but getting them to actually go to a meeting or even vote consistently has proven difficult.

I am a strong proponent of same-day voter registration, a long-time right in the state of Maine.

While recent press accounts create the impression that there are problems with young people voting too much, in my experience the real problem is the opposite.

For the nation's system of democracy to work as the Founding Fathers intended, people must be willing and able to exercise their civic duty.

I want to be able to continue to talk about important issues with my friends and to encourage them to vote. The system should support and facilitate everyone’s participation, rather than create barriers to civic engagement.

Josh Quint, Minot