Featuring an Interview with 24-Year-old Provo City Council Candidate, Tanner Bennett
Americans are seriously concerned about the age and cognitive ability of their many politicians. President Biden, who is 80 years old, has had multiple public stumbles and gaffes that have hindered his presidency and overshadowed his legislative accomplishments. During recent press conferences, 81-year-old Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell froze and remained unresponsive as stunned reporters watched. Dianne Feinstein, 90, has been hospitalized multiple times for brain inflammation [1]. It is time for politicians above the age of 65 to serve out their existing terms and hand over leadership to younger generations.
How did America wind up with leaders who need to make decisions on artificial iIntelligence, yet they cannot operate a smartphone? How do we have politicians who cannot formulate a proper sentence at a time when U.S. ties with world powers such as China and Russia are deteriorating? With all due respect, we recognize the contributions many of these politicians have made to the country. However, these cognitive lapses are dangerous and send the wrong signal about the country around the world.
Although some millenial and Gen Z representatives have been elected to Congress in recent election cycles, there is still more work to be done. The Senate's average age is 65.3 years [2]. Individuals on both sides of the aisle agree that younger individuals with new and fresh ideas must come to support the country in these times of severe divisiveness.
On November 4th, Provo will be voting for a new city council [3]. Tanner Bennett, a 24-year-old BYU student, ran a grassroots campaign to be a member of the city council while studying, working two jobs, and caring for his wife. Tanner, impressively, refused all donations in favor of having contributors give to the community [4]. Tanner Bennett garnered over 1500 votes, and while he fell just short of advancing to the final election, his campaign left an impression on the community.
Q: What made you want to run for Provo City council?
A: “The primary reason I decided to run was that nobody else was. Back in June, my wife mentioned that the candidate filing period was closing. I was looking at the candidates and felt so uninspired. I doubted that any of them knew what was going on in students' lives and what young people are dealing with in this area. Having now run the campaign, I know I was correct. It was a big deal to have somebody run for office that connected so well with the young people of Provo.”
“What we are seeing is this trend towards gerontocracy in the United States. We have people that have been holding on to power for decades. 80 or 90 year old people are no longer the demographic we can rely on to make the decisions about the future. Really where it starts is at the city level. The issues we care about as students such as parking, rent, housing quality, the things that impact us the most come from the city level. [My campaign] was inspired by the idea that young people need to be running and trying to get their voice out there. My voice was supported by students and young people that finally felt they could relate to someone who was running for office– perhaps for the first time in their lives. Even though it wasn’t a win, I see it overall as a net positive for us and our community.”
Q: What is your view on the current state of government?
A: “The government has its parts that are functional. There are people that work well together, but ultimately we are moving towards exponential polarization. It has spiraled us into tribalism and nationalism that is extremely dangerous. I did not run as a Republican or Democrat, I ran as a moderate Independent because our city and country needs more moderation instead of spinning further from each other to the point that nothing gets done. People are not emphasizing policy– rather, they are emphasizing emotion and ideology and they're highlighting problems without providing solutions.”
Q: A lot of young people get discouraged when looking at all that is happening around us and feel like it's easier to block it out. What role should young people play in politics?
A:”It is in our greatest interest to be more involved. The reason we have 70, 80, 90 year olds in the government is because we do not have the time and resources to invest into politics because we are all so concerned with making our ends meet. You look around the city we live in, 33% of us are at or below the poverty line. No one in the younger demographic who are working and trying to find a way to pay rent or food do not have the bandwidth to think about running for office. As someone who ran a campaign working two jobs with a very sick wife, taking classes, doing research, I wanted to show that this does not need to be a great time commitment. We can make a difference and that is what we did. Even without winning, we were able to contribute $15,000 and hundreds of hours of community service to care and food bank organizations. We did so much good despite volunteers having so much going on.
Q: What is next for you now that the primary election is over?
A: “Quite a few of our social media videos have gone viral and we have used that momentum to start the Renters Advocacy Network or "RAN". I intend for it to be a lobbying group for students and young people’s rights in Provo. We are taking on parking enforcement, landlords, and low wages. We have made the network with the intent to make measurable strides in these areas and a statewide bill to combat predatory towing and booting throughout the state level. Ultimately, what I hope people realize through our efforts is that we have power when we work together, and to inspire people in our demographic to become more civically engaged.”
Young people must take action by having open and honest talks with each other, exercising our voting rights for good, and paying attention to local politics. Our unique tools such as social media allow us to spend little to no time or money while still making a difference. commitment in time and money to really make a difference. As the 2024 election approaches, we must be active citizens if we really want change at the top of government.
