Tag: Dwight Gooden

More Millennials Are Getting Involved in Politics Millennials are making their mark when it comes to running for office, and they have power when it comes to electing candidates. In Texas alone, the number of registered voters under the age of 35 is about 4.3 million. State Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Terrell, was first elected to office at age 27 and says when he arrived at the Texas Legislature, he recalls members looking at his class and remarking how young they were. He is running for the congressional seat held by U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling, who is retiring. 2008 is a year that sticks out to Dallas ISD board member Miguel Solis. Solis worked in field operations for Obama, before getting elected to the school board. Solis is also the president of the Latino Center for Leadership and Development, an organization that gets young people involved in the political process. And there are groups popping up like Run for Something, entirely dedicated to putting millennial Democrats in office. Political science professor Cal Jillson expects to see the number of young people involved go up, especially in this election cycle "I think we are seeing younger candidates. On the Republican side, they're seeing an uptick in young candidates as well.