Yolanda, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s granddaughter, casts her first historic vote in Atlanta on Election Day.

Yolanda Renee King, the only grandchild of civil rights legends Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, cast her first ballot in Atlanta, Georgia, on Nov.

3. The 18-year-old college student returned home to carry on the King family’s legacy of civic engagement. Yolanda, accompanied by her parents, Martin Luther King III and Arndrea Waters King, arrived at Trinity Presbyterian Church at 3003 Howell Mill Road NW around 10:30 a.m., excited to take part in Election Day at last.

She said she had long looked forward to the moment when she could vote herself after watching her parents do so for years. Yolanda spoke about the weight of that responsibility and the importance of making her voice heard. “My grandparents had their fight.

My parents had theirs. This one is mine,” Yolanda said. “People bled for this right.

I’m not going to waste it.” Her first trip to the polls also reflects the growing power of young voters in Georgia and across the country, with research from CIRCLE at Tufts University estimating that nearly 50 million Americans ages 18 to 29 are eligible to vote in this election cycle. Even though it was her first time voting, Yolanda was clear about the political and social issues at stake. In an interview at the northwest Atlanta polling site, she spoke candidly about the concerns on her mind.

“We see voting rights being attacked and so one of the best ways to do that, is through resistance,” Yolanda told BLACK ENTERPRISE. “I think one of the best ways to resist is through voting … we were talking in the car of how the voting process works and I was thinking about all the legislation that was passed following the 2020 elections within our state and I was thinking wow…” Yolanda added, “Why are they making … voting more difficult? Why is it harder to vote, and easier to own a gun?

A lot of these decision makers know that voting matters.” Read more of BE’s conversation with Yolanda King below. RELATED CONTENT: The Key to Motivating Young Voters? Young Candidates