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Who shows up to cast a ballot and who is allowed to mark a ballot and have it counted will determine which candidates take office and what issues they focus on.

The Conversation asked three scholars of for their insights as the election approaches.

More women vote, and white women vote differently, (Jane Junn, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences)

As the 2022 midterm elections approach, and in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court , new attention is focused on the role of women voters in U.S. elections. Regarding their turnout, three facts are important to keep in mind.

First, women outnumber men in the electorate. In the 2020 presidential election, compared with 46.9% of men. This is a .

Second, the gender gap is also a race gap. Women are than men, but there are racial and ethnic differences in that overall trend. While Black, Latina, Asian American and other women voters of color are , most white female voters have .

For example, in 2020, —compared with 46% who supported President Joe Biden.

Third, every election has a unique electorate. So it's important to distinguish between voter turnout, where mobilization is key, and the patterns of partisan candidate choice. National patterns of voting in presidential elections are different from state and local election trends. And the contours of the voting public change over time, as young people turn 18 and new citizens register to vote.

Young voter turnout is low, (John Holbein, University of Virginia)

The United States has some of the in the world. That's despite the fact that a dominant majority of young people 18 to 24 years old and want to participate in politics.

As my collaborator, political scientist , and describe in our book "," many young people find the process of registering and voting too complex.

There are two ways to address this problem. The first is to revamp civics education to teach young people the skills they need to overcome voting obstacles. The is a group of schools that structures students' around "educating responsible citizen scholars for success in the college of their choice and a life of active citizenship."

The other way is to reform laws to make registration easier and less complex, such as enabling , and .

Both approaches meaningfully increase youth turnout and would help .

Voter ID laws affect turnout unequally, (Nazita Lajevardi, Michigan State University)

In 35 states, voters must when they arrive to cast a ballot. In eight of those states, the strictest rules apply, typically requiring voters who arrive without a proper photo ID to , before their vote will be counted.

These laws make it more difficult for all people to vote, but do so unequally. than whites to be able to of securing qualifying identification, such as even getting to a motor vehicles office to attain the identification required to vote.

The of appear to .

Further, research shows that minorities are to be asked to actually present their ID at the polls.

And finally, even if voter ID laws are repealed, studies show that their effects last: People who were less likely to have proper ID still don't show up, even if they don't need those IDs anymore. That signals voters about whether they are allowed to vote, even when the law is clear that they can.

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