It's funny, the first election I remember was '92, I was 8. I remember asking my parents who they were voting for, they wouldn't tell me. Finally they sat me down, you would have thought something died. They wanted to tell me who they voted for, and why, because they thought it was important, but that I absolutely couldn't speak about it to anyone, it was private.
Contrast that to today when I know, loudly, who everybody voted for. Granted the nationalization of platforms also means most people vote straight ticket, even if they pretend they don't, since all the candidates look the same on the issues.