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Editor’s Note: Lexi Heaton is a student in Dawn Morais Webster’s honors class at the University of Hawaii. This is one of a series of student essays from that class about voting and issues that bring millennials to the polls. Read Dawn Webster’s kick-off post here.

I worry about my future in terms of graduating and finding a quality job; I worry about the racial tensions ending in unnecessary deaths; I worry about the security of the nation and the ever growing presence of terrorism; I worry about the growth of acceptance of abortion in the community.

Therefore, following the next election I fear underfunding to scientific and environmental research; I fear a rise in racial injustice; I fear a repeat of 9/11; I fear additional funding being given to health clinics aiding in abortions.

Clearly, the upcoming election has great importance for the future.

The problem: I agree with half the things one candidate says and half the things the other stands for. Neither fits the cookie-cutter ideal of who I want to vote for in my first election.

I would argue that not having an ideal (or even remotely close to ideal) candidate, is the reason that millennials do not vote.

Voting in and of itself is a relatively simple task. Apply online, receive a ballot in the mail, and bubble in some circle. However, it is making a choice of which bubble and all the implications that may come from that choice that is hard.

I believe that many millennials do in fact care, some more than others, but the majority care about the problems facing the country. However, it is easier to not care and not vote, than it is to sit down and truly consider the difficult election facing America today.

Nevertheless, choosing to take the hard road and select a politician is what makes democracy work. Votes display the desires of the people and voting is the primary manner in which to convey one’s beliefs about the nation. Hence, without an active population of voters the political system will fall to pieces (some argue this has already happened). Therefore, the message is to vote.

Not only does this decision weigh heavily on the U.S. it also will send shock waves throughout Europe and the Middle East as well as neighboring countries such as Canada and Mexico. One candidate may stop the immigration along the Mexican border with a wall and effectively create a flood of emigration to Canada.

Yet, the ability to suppress ISIS and tend to countries in the Middle East remains a huge and unpleasant task for both candidates. Once again, the fate of the U.S. and every country with relations to the United States could potentially be affected by this election.

Why then do people still refuse to vote? I hesitate to vote because I simply refuse to vote for the lesser of the two evils. I currently cannot and will not vote for either Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump. I fail my civic duty.

Well, that is only if the other two candidates are forgotten. Thus, my current plan (prior to the debates) is to vote for a third-party candidate. Some argue that voting for a third-party candidate is useless; however, millennials are an under-represented vote.

Politicians do not take the time to listen to millennials because we are not profitable for their quest to the White House. If this can be reversed, if millennials go out and vote in masses and prove that we matter, then Washington will begin to listen.

Right now, there isn’t a strong middle-ground candidate because voters are not supporting these candidates. CNN, Fox News, the LA Times and several other news agencies are reporting that the millennial population is much more conservative than previously thought. While we may not be extreme conservatives, we are not extreme liberals either and hence a middle ground candidate could potentially be successful.

Could! If we voted!

While I am sure there are a plethora of reasons for a historically weak third party, a key reason today ties into the fact that millennials (those creating this middle party) are not voting. Hence, I believe that it is important that the younger generation votes in order to weigh in on the issues.

Whether it be a vote for a primary candidate that one truly believes is right for the country or a candidate that hardly has hope, a vote identifies to the political community that we as millennials matter and simply given a leader can create change that we desire.