By Cassandra Chabot, Granite State News Collaborative
It’s not uncommon for college undergraduates to juggle school, extracurriculars, a job and a social life, and 21-year-old Jacob Favolise is no stranger to this “grinder” mentality.
On track to finish his bachelor’s degree at Keene State College, Favolise also participates in the student government and college senate and recently he added another responsibility to his daily schedule: He’s a member of the Keene City Council.
In April, Favolise became aware of a vacancy on the council, and he decided to run for the office.
“I had to pay $2 and sign a form, and I was on the special election ballot for the city council,” he said. “Going through my mind was kind of the pros and cons of running, and I thought, “the worst that's going to happen is that I'm out two bucks, and the best that happens is that I get elected to city council.”
Favolise said no driving reason led him to politics. Sure, he grew up in a politically engaged household in southern Maine, but no one ever specifically nudged him in that direction.
Seeking to give back to his community, Favolise knew he wanted a role in leadership and advocacy. While his bachelor’s degree and political science major would guarantee him the opportunity in the future, Favolise took a big step in that direction before even walking the stage and receiving his degree.
At the end of his junior year in college, he decided to run for the city council. The city council initially voted in May to fill the vacancy, and Favolise lost. But, in a turn of events, a two-round deadlock between the first two finalists resulted in an entirely new round of balloting in June, and once again Favolise found himself campaigning for the position. And this time councilors voted 11-3 in his favor against Michael Conway.
Jacob Favolise addresses the Keene City Council relative to his candidacy for the vacant Ward 1 seat in June. Favolise, 21, won the contest with a 11-3 vote.
Hunter Oberst / Sentinel Staff
Favolise was prepared to take on the questions and concerns from his peers and the public. “I try to encourage others to remember that I am not a college student city councilor. I am not a young city councilor. I am simply a city councilor,” he said. “I’m really focused on the job, because I would have the same responsibilities as a councilor if I were 51, if I were 101, as I do at 21.”
Favolise acknowledged that becoming involved in politics can seem overly complicated and even unorthodox for someone his age.
“There are plenty of reasons for young people not to engage [in politics]. It is negative, it is angry, and it can often feel very detached from their daily lives,” Favolise said.
Learning to navigate something that is not only foreign but has become increasingly polarizing can be daunting. However, colleges that promote an interactive democracy within their student body can actively work to close the gap between those who participate in politics and those who don’t, he said.
“It can introduce students to this idea that they have rights and responsibilities as citizens of a republican democracy, but also that they're going to encounter people on campus, and even more so off campus, that have different opinions than them, and that's OK,” he said.
According to Favolise, engagement doesn’t have to just start in college, or even in your 20s. One way to encourage voting, he said, is for parents to take their children to the polls. “Take them to vote with you,” Favolise said. “Voting is a habit, and when you ask people why they vote, they may give you an answer based on a specific candidate they like or dislike, or an issue that matters. They may give you some kind of flowery prose about the importance of having your voice heard. But really what it comes down to for a lot of voters is, ‘I'm voting in this election because I always vote.’”
Jacob Favolise takes his oath of office before immediately assuming his role as a Ward 1 Keene city councilor Thursday night.
Hunter Oberst / Sentinel Staff
Voting is not something that should be seen as difficult, but as something so easy you can take your child along with you, he added. “Familiarizing them with it, I think, is huge,” Favolise said.
Though youth voting is always emphasized around election season, it is never clear what is going to be that factor that will engage them. Sometimes it’s pressing issues, such as abortion or health care. But 2024 seems to check more historical boxes than ever, Favolise said, recounting the summer’s events: “One of the presidential candidates was shot, the other presidential candidate dropped out and was replaced with the vice president, so there is a little bit more energy and excitement around the race.”
So what better time than now to ask questions and do your research. “Don’t be afraid to learn more,” Favolise said. “It’s scary to reach out to random people, but when you reach out to local political groups and campaigns and candidates, they have a very significant vested interest in creating another generation of activists that are going to carry the values of the party or the campaign or the candidate, or what have you, forward.” The easiest way to get involved, he said, is to just do it — ask for help, accept differing perspectives, communicate, and always remain curious.
The Know Your Vote youth voter guide project was designed, reported and produced by student and young professional journalists from The Clock, Concord Monitor, The Equinox, Granite State News Collaborative, Keene State College, Laconia Daily Sun, Monadnock Ledger-Transcript, Nashua Ink Link, and The Presidency and the Press program at Franklin Pierce University. See the full guide atwww.collaborativenh.org/know-your-vote.