Maybe it’s the hope our new President inspires… or the cultural and historic significance of his landslide victory… or the stunning fashion plate of a new first lady… or the first time in decades there’ll be preteens growing up in the White House… whatever the reason, there is no doubt that young Americans are more energized by this election than any in recent memory. At 11:00 on election night, TV coverage showed dozens of places across the country where spontaneous groups of teens danced and cheered wildly upon hearing the results.

The election overturned many deeply held beliefs about the way America perceived a black minority which makes up 13% of its population. The thousands of girls who voted for President Obama by a margin of nearly five to one in a mock election sponsored by Girls Inc., remembered the senator’s support of a sports initiative aimed at discouraging socially risky behavior in teenage girls by encouraging them to pursue physical activities. And for those who watched him on MTV agreed with the always sharply dressed Obama when he admonished teenage boys for showing their underwear, telling them to “pull up their pants.”

But it might be our new leader’s stylish, comfortable, uniquely American family that most teenage girls find intriguing. Malia and Sasha will be meeting amazing famous people… maybe Nelson Mandela one day and Miley Cyrus the next. Their new home has a movie theater, a swimming pool and multiple staircases and elevators. They’ll travel on private jets and presidential yachts. Their family has Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, to run away to on weekends. As far as benefits go, one presidential daughter, Susan Ford, even hosted her high school prom at the White House.

First Lady Michele Obama is clever, independent, and refreshingly “normal.” She proudly shops off the rack from stores like J Crew and the GAP and she and her daughters are always appropriately dressed. Where other presidential wives seem either meek in a grin-and-bear-it kind of way… or two-for-the-price-of-one heads of state, she is the complete package. The fact that she is supportive, intelligent and a fashion icon is icing on the cake for this Harvard trained lawyer. And how can you not admire a woman who says “My first job, in all honesty, is going to continue to be mom-in-chief.”

The downside for all this good fortune is that everything Malia and Sasha say or do will be magnified, scrutinized and sensationalized. The sisters have to be extremely careful not to behave in any way that might return to haunt them. When one of President Bush’s daughters made a face at a photographer who was stalking her, the photo made headlines around the world. President Tyler had a teenage daughter, Alice, whose chubbiness earned her the unkind label, “Fat Alice” which followed her for the rest of her life. It’s probably a really good idea that their grandmother is moving into the White House with the family, for who can be called upon to more fiercely protect you than your grandma?