Uma Hedge Launches Before the Ballot to Prep Florida Teens for 2028

Uma Hedge cannot cast a ballot in the upcoming midterm election. She is sixteen years old. That restriction has not stopped her from building a media platform dedicated to preparing her peers for the 2028 presidential race.

The South Florida high school student launched an initiative called Before the Ballot earlier this year. The project aims to educate teenagers on bipartisan issues so they arrive at voting age with a working understanding of government. Hedge operates the platform through Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, where she posts weekly discussion videos and candidate interviews.

Hedge identified a gap in political engagement among her age group. She observed that many of her friends either ignored current events or struggled to follow complex debates. "I would watch these interviews and these debates, I’d realize, ‘Huh, I’m having trouble understanding this.’ Imagine how my peers who weren’t raised in this environment, imagine how they must feel," Hedge said.

The initiative began as a personal effort to clarify confusing political news for her social circle. Hedge wanted to speak directly to her generation rather than relying on traditional news outlets. "I wanted to talk directly to my generation eye-to-eye and say, ‘Okay, look, these are the facts, this is what happened. You decide what issues are important,’" she explained.

Since launching the project, Before the Ballot has accumulated thousands of followers in a few months. Hedge interviews candidates from across the political spectrum, including local Florida officials and national figures. She reports finding common ground with interviewees from both ends of the spectrum. "I’ve interviewed from one end of the spectrum to the other. I’ve loved all of them," she said.

The positive response from young viewers has driven the growth of the channel. Friends and followers have told Hedge that her videos serve as their primary news source. "They’re like, ‘Wow, you’re amazing,’" she said. "My friends are texting me and they’re like, ‘You’re my source of news.'"

Hedge continues to produce content as the nation prepares for the midterm election. She views the process of interviewing politicians and seeing the behind-the-scenes aspects of campaigns as a way to deepen her own understanding of the political system. "I think seeing all this unfold from what I know now, having interviewed politicians, and having seen the background, the underside of it, I think it’s so much more interesting now," she said.

The project will continue through the 2026 election cycle. Hedge will be eligible to vote in the 2028 presidential election. She plans to keep publishing videos to help her peers feel prepared and motivated to participate in civic duty when they reach voting age.

"We have the power to change the world and I don’t think enough of us have realized that yet," Hedge said. "So I really hope with these videos, if I can make one, just one person go, ‘You know what, I can vote. You know what? I should vote, I should be involved in civic duty,’ then my mission’s been accomplished."