What event sparked your interest into politics?

[Phony Moderate]

The lead-up to the Iraq War.

First purely domestic event I can remember at all following was the downfall of IDS.

[Enduro]

The 2008 election was my first exposure to politics. I really got into it during the 2012 republican primaries.

[White Trash]

Watching my mother struggle with a declined EBT card at a supermarket and thinking that it didn't have to be this way. I grew up very angry.

[Coolface Sock #42069]

Although I was somewhat interested in politics during Bush's second term, it was the threat of universal healthcare when Obama was elected that really pushed me into politics. I was a freshman in college and drove six hours that Election Day to vote for John McCain. My main focus has always been on making the federal government smaller, less powerful, and less redistributive, along with pragmatic foreign policy more along the lines of Obama's than McCain's or Bush's, and returning power to the states so people can move to another state if they don't like the way things are run.

[Donerail]

I remember reading a newspaper feature in early 2008 comparing the primary candidates. Two of the candidates wanted to end the war and, bizarrely, all the candidates for the other party wanted to continue the war. I didn't understand how all the candidates for a party could support something that was so self-evidently terrible, and I decided to support the candidates (John Edwards and later Barack Obama) that promised to end the war.

[This account no longer in use.]

There wasn't really a major moment for me. If I had to choose one, I'd go with the 2014 midterms.

[Phony Moderate]

In terms of American politics, my first exposure to it was hearing family members talking of the 'stupid George Bush' around 2003. Then I remember final days of the 2004 campaign. Again, I have a weird memory of a BBC news report: John Kerry seemed to be driving himself around on the campaign trail while talking to the camera. That's how I remember it anyway, although it was probably in fact just the BBC's America correspondent (presumably an ageing white male). My dad wasn't exactly a Kerry enthusiast IIRC. On the day of the election, we had to individually write a mock newspaper front page in class. I did one with the headline "BUSH WINS ELECTION", underneath which was a load of crap about the poorer states such as Mississippi voting for Kerry, that Bush had only won by ONE VOTE and that Kerry planned to "fight the next election". The teacher informed me that we didn't know the result yet. Funny thing is that a lot of people in my class (we were only 10 or 11 years old) were interested in it. My friend who sat next to me seemed to be supporting Bush, and the next morning we were discussing how the election was going - it was 254-242 (although I misread it as 54-42) to Bush when I left for school - although it had apparently only been 249-242 when others left (I was late, probably). Probably Nevada was the one that put it at 254. Then I remember my mum's cousin (not exactly a political obsessive) who was moaning about Bush being "still in" - Kerry had conceded just before we arrived at her house IIRC. My dad and I also joked about Bush and Kerry taking part in a penalty shoot-out in the event of a tie.

Good times.

[(Still) muted by Kalwejt until March 31]

The Ron Paul campaign in 2008.

[Kingpoleon]

My family always has been. Listening to Kasich on Fox in 2012 probably did it for me.

[Cashew]

The first moment I can remember is the Iraq war, although I did not get seriously interested until 2008, wondering why the economy crashed, and why republicans still supported the Iraq war.

[(Still) muted by Kalwejt until March 31]

The first moment I can remember is the Iraq war, although I did not get seriously interested until 2008, wondering why the economy crashed, and why republicans still supported the Iraq war.

-Two factors:

1. Blind partisan loyalty, as with Dem Russophobia (this is the biggest factor)

2. The U.S. was winning

I remember that time. I thought it was wonderful how real wages were rising due to the collapsing oil prices for those who had jobs back in late '08, especially given the extremely high oil prices that summer. Of course, I liked the fact that much the same happened without recession in 2014.

I've always had a strong preference for order since my earliest days in the classroom. From the beginning, I thought Stalinism was the best way to maintain order, to bring everyone up to standard. Then, I discovered libertarianism, which is beautiful in its doctrine of liberating the orderly from paying for the fortunue of the disorderly, allowing the latter to fall through the cracks. I'm still largely a libertarian, but my statist tendencies crept back up in regards to social (and some economic) issues. My preference for order has not in the least abated, and I hold only disgust for its enemies.

I couldn't really understand the modern American left-right spectrum for years. I still only barely have an inkling of how it makes sense, and ties into the marriage gap. The libertarian-authoritarian spectrum makes perfect sense to a child's mind. The left-right marriage-gap based spectrum does not.

[100% pro-life no matter what]

I remember the 2004 election from when I was in third grade, and I wanted Bush to win, but I didn't know why, so it was more like rooting for a sports team.  Actually, before that, I remember when the TV cut to the news of Reagan's death that summer, and that really saddened me.  When I was a little kid, I used to say something like "I'm a Democrat [because I thought the word 'Democrat' was more fun to say than the word 'Republican', but I like Bush [because he was the president that I knew]".

2008 was the first time where I actually started to care about issues, though.  In early 2008, I was watching a Democratic debate with my grandfather, and he wanted to see where I stood politically, so he asked me some questions.  I really didn't understand any of them, but one stuck out with me- when he asked me what I thought of abortion.  My answer was "what's that?", and after I learned what it is, I said "that's murder".  But, I didn't know which side believed what on abortion and randomly decided to root for (notice that I didn't say support, since it was still like a sports team) Hillary Clinton in the primaries.

That August, my aunt asked me who I wanted to get elected president, and I said "I guess Obama, but I don't really care".  She then asked me why I wanted him to win, and, since I only knew about one issue and didn't know where either side stood, I said "there is this thing called abortion that I believe is murdering babies, and Obama opposes it, and McCain likes it".  Then, my aunt told me that I had it backwards, so I supported McCain and started to learn about other issues and realized that I was a big Republican on everything.

[fhtagn]

Can't remember if it was a specific even that sparked it or not, but it was during Dubya's second term.

[Confused Democrat]

News reports about Bernie Sanders raising $1.5 shortly after declaring his presidential candidacy on the Capital lawn.

I just remember thinking to myself that there was something different going on here, and I wanted to be a part of it.

[Meclazine for Israel]

This guy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rik5fVQEiEI

[DPKdebator]

The 2016 election, specifically when Trump descended from the escalator and announced his candidacy. He added high-energy to the campaign that would've have been there without him, and I probably wouldn't have followed it as much.

[SWE]

Temporarily during the 2008 election, permanently during the 2012 election.

[dead0man]

arguing with hippies in the 80s

[Torie]

I have no idea. All I know, is that at 5 years and 10 months old, I was watching the election returns in the 1956 election with my parents on a black and white TV, and remember asking my parents why Eisenhower was smiling over his victory, when he already knew well prior to the election that he was going to win (presumably I was recalling what my parents had told me sometime earlier about the handicapping of the race). I guess my assumption was that to be happy about something, the good news needed to be in substantial doubt beforehand or a surprise. Thus, I would not have made the comment, if instead of Eisenhower on the tube, it was Trump.

In 1960, ABC had this computer (black box) that gave the odds that either Nixon or Kennedy would win as the returns rolled in (kind of like Nate Silver and 538 now).  My mother disliked the ABC computer/black box, and complained that it was obviously a Democratic hack. I remember at the time, being rather confused by her remark, but decided to leave her be in her misery. It turned out that the black box did overstate the Kennedy odds. It assumed I guess that as the Northeast goes, so goes the industrial Midwest. So maybe my mother had a point.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Probably stuff I read in the 90s.

[Virginiá]

I have no idea. All I know, is that at 5 years and 10 months old, I was watching the election returns in the 1956 election with my parents on a black and white TV, and remember asking my parents why Eisenhower was smiling over his victory, when he already knew well prior to the election that he was going to win (presumably I was recalling what my parents had told me sometime earlier about the handicapping of the race). I guess my assumption was that to be happy about something, the good news needed to be in substantial doubt beforehand or a surprise. Thus, I would not have made the comment, if instead of Eisenhower on the tube, it was Trump.

In 1960, ABC had this computer (black box) that gave the odds that either Nixon or Kennedy would win as the returns rolled in (kind of like Nate Silver and 538 now).  My mother disliked the ABC computer/black box, and complained that it was obviously a Democratic hack. I remember at the time, being rather confused by her remark, but decided to leave her be in her misery. It turned out that the black box did overstate the Kennedy odds. It assumed I guess that as the Northeast goes, so goes the industrial Midwest. So maybe my mother had a point.

I wonder if any of this, the same things that generated an interest in politics, also sparked your desire to be a lawyer? It does seem like a similar line of thinking. Sometimes even seemingly insignificant events during childhood do seem to be able to influence future behavior quite a bit (which I guess by definition here it would make them significant!)

I don't think I'd have ever taken an interest in programming when my dad started teaching me had my family not moved around so much when I was younger, leaving me often with little to do but sit around playing games on MSN Gaming Zone & MSN Chat (complicated story)

[MLM]

Scottish independence referendum.

[Vosem]

I was effectively inspired to be interested in politics (and my interests in history, other social sciences, and so forth mainly came from my interest in politics) by John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign, at a pretty absurdly young age (11 years old). I distinctly remember being bored waiting at a barbershop in November or December 2007, reading a magazine article that was a very basic profile of McCain, and then the whole thing spiraling massively from there.

[Kringla Heimsins]

My first political memory is the reelection of Jacques Chirac against Jean-Marie Le Pen in 2002. I remember preferring Chirac, because he was  the only President I ever knew. My parents voted for the anticapitalist candidate though, lol.

I also remember reading about the 2004 US election. But I think the first time I really became interested by political events was the 2007 election, which saw Nicolas Sarkozy become President. I remember taking part in a mock election with my primary school classmates in the official voting booths of my town.

[Technocracy Timmy]

I wonder if any of this, the same things that generated an interest in politics, also sparked your desire to be a lawyer? It does seem like a similar line of thinking. Sometimes even seemingly insignificant events during childhood do seem to be able to influence future behavior quite a bit (which I guess by definition here it would make them significant!)

I don't think I'd have ever taken an interest in programming when my dad started teaching me had my family not moved around so much when I was younger, leaving me often with little to do but sit around playing games on MSN Gaming Zone & MSN Chat (complicated story)

I think this is generally true. Social conditioning from a young age has a strong influence over people's politics.

I've always had a strong interest in politics ever since I was young. I got this from my father who, like me, has an almost autistic like obsession with politics. His fervent hatred of George W. Bush and the Republican Party along with his idolization of John F. Kennedy definitely shaped my political views.

By contrast, my older brother was closer to our maternal grandparents and they were very conservative. He voted for Trump last year and has always been a Republican.