Every two years, citizens over the age of 18 are called to vote for the candidates they deem to best represent their political beliefs and values. For most of us, that only includes our parents, teachers and older siblings. There are a handful of seniors, though, that have surpassed that milestone of independence into the world of adulthood.

With college and their whole adult life on the horizon, a few of these seniors have decided to take advantage of their good timing.

Even though teenagers make up a small percentage of voters, senior Steven Fuson believes that not taking advantage of that opportunity is “exactly what’s wrong with our society right now.”

Especially with charter schools being a larger topic of debate, students like senior Joey Yphantides feels like elections “have a bigger effect on us because we go to charter schools.”

With policy and legislation that could change their future, senior Vida Wilson believes that “some of the laws have a more direct effect and because we’re younger, these laws will have a much longer effect on us.”

With so much on the line, not voting is hard to relate to.

“We’re one of the only countries that have the right to vote, and not voting is just a waste,” Wilson said.