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‘They are the future’: First-time voters head to the polls in Idaho

First-time voters are casting their ballots in Idaho.

IDAHO, USA — It’s the final countdown for decision 2024, and voters in Idaho are heading to the polls. So far, 380,603 ballots have been cast – including absentee ballots and early voting. 

There are 1,680,941 registered voters in Idaho, meaning over half of Idahoans still need to vote Tuesday. Several of those are first-time voters – casting their ballot for the first time. 

“I try to put myself in their shoes and think about what it would be like for this election to be the first one I've ever voted in,” said Charles Hunt, assistant professor of Political Science at BSU. 

Hunt said he has tried to tell his students in political science classes how historic and different this election is.

“A lot of what I do is talk to my students about the stuff that's normal, and then the stuff that's maybe not so normal that we don't know as much about,” Hunt said. ”We try to make as educated guesses as we possibly can.”

Hunt said he predicts Tuesday will be a close race… and it is likely a president will not be announced by Tuesday night. 

“We have an historic candidate on one side. And we have the first in a long time, a former president running not as an incumbent. We had this switch in the candidates in the middle of the race, which just does not happen,” Hunt said. 

Nathan Delaney is a first-year at Boise State, and he said he is planning to vote Tuesday for the first time, in an election he knows is historic. 

“It's definitely one of those crazier ones that's gonna be going down in this era right now,” Delaney said. 

Elliot Little, also a student at BSU, said he already voted using an absentee ballot. He said it was pretty easy, even though he didn’t know what to expect. 

“If you think it's just going to be a hassle, it's really not that big of a deal,” Little said. “Just put your voice out there, every statistic matters.” 

BSU student Bryce Johnson said he is planning to vote Tuesday as well, after doing research, re-watching the presidential debate and talking with his friends and family about policies. 

“It's super important for young people to vote because they're the future,” Johnson said. “They're going to be the old people soon. So it's important for all ages to be represented and get their voice out there.” 

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