The Next Generation: Nicole Alexakos

At only 18 years of age, Nicole Alexakos is already heavily involved in the conservative movement. This Dallas, Texas native credits her family and her upbringing for her political beliefs. At the heart of her beliefs is her strong Christian faith. “Everything I was taught growing up was based upon scripture, which runs parallel with conservative viewpoints,” she says. With her strong Texas roots, her upbringing was very much rooted in the “traditional justice and strong moral values” of the area.

Nicole is quick to point to her political involvement beginning at a very young age, relating a story from her elementary school days during the 1992 Presidential election. “I was in kindergarten when Bill Clinton ran for President,” she recalls, “and I remember they held an election in our class. Over half the class voted for Clinton, including my best friend at the time. I was crushed! In my mind he was the face of evil, and my own friend was voting for him. Though I campaigned my heart out President Clinton still won our class election. I did get to take President Bush’s picture home though.” And although Nicole admits that she did grow up with Fox News always on in the background of her home growing up, or the radio tuned to Rush Limbaugh in the car, she wasn’t forced into conservatism. Rather, it was something she arrived at on her own, through her strong love of justice and a belief in what is right.

Nicole’s biggest passion in conservative politics is the pro-life movement. She speaks multiple times a month at rallies, banquets, clubs, and groups. To her, babies are precious, and she feels called to be a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. She also feels the need to awaken other member of her generation. “I see my peers and cringe sometimes. A lot of them have become apathetic at best, much like spoon-fed zombies who don’t care to think for themselves. As a conservative with a different view point, conservatives are labeled “small minded” or worse. My goal is to rally together others in my generation with the same values, goals, and visions, and educate our youth and other young adults and challenge them to look past their school education on government.” Nicole’s answer to this apathy has been her organization, The Next Generation Movement, at www.nextgenerationmovement.com, doing most of her writing at www.nextgenerationdaughters.com.

In addition to speaking on behalf of the pro-life movement and her work on Next Generation, Nicole helps to organize local tea parties and other GOP functions in her town and around the state. Recently, she hosted a youth meeting targeted at educating other youngsters about state, local, and national government. She addresses topics like identifying their elected officials, how to write a bill, and other similar topics. In mid-April Nicole will be spending a week at the state Capitol for TeenPact, where she will be discussing conservative topics and practicing debating the conservative side of the issues, as well as meeting with legislators and other government officials.

When it comes to the conservative leaders she admires, Nicole points to Ann Coulter. “I’ve loved her from a young age and I have all of her books.” When I was little I even got the Ann Coulter doll. Most recently, when her latest book came out, I got the audio version and took it to the beach for about 8 hours, just so that I could listen to the whole thing. I also really admire how she is never afraid to say what she really believes and she is also an excellent speaker.” Perhaps it is Nicole’s own love of public speaking as a favorite past time, coupled with Ms. Coulter’s strong Christian and conservative views that draw her to this controversial conservative author.

When it comes to getting involved, Nicole urges those with an interest not to be afraid to just dive in. Even if they might feel they aren’t making an impact, every voice matters. She encourages conservatives to start a blog, or volunteer at a rally, because even small steps can have a chain reaction. She also urges education. “Really educate yourself on what you believe and why and don’t compromise and settle. Be strong, bold, and passionate. When I first began getting really involved, I found myself frustrated that I couldn’t fix the world. I wanted to do everything myself, because it’s just my nature to problem solve and try to fix things. I quickly learned I was just treating symptoms and not even making a dent on the heart of the issue. One person can’t do it alone.”

At her age, Nicole is certainly a young conservative activist to watch. “How can we expect my generation to lead our nation one day if we don’t equip them with the right tools and information?” she asks. “When we don’t, we wind up with a President Obama.” There is no mistaking the fact that Nicole is poised to keep working for the conservative values and beliefs she holds near and dear.

Popularity: 2% [?]