UNITED STATES—In many parts of the country this week, it was Election Day for many voters. No, it’s not for the President of the United States, which tends to be the time most voters actually show up to the polls. That will not happen until 2028, but you will see a turnout of voters in 2026, as its Mid-Term Elections and many Governor seats are up for grabs.
However, the chat this week is about local politics. They don’t seem to receive the same attention as state and federal elections, and it begs this poignant question: WHY? Why don’t voters care about local issues? The ones that are most likely to impact their everyday lives. I’ll tell you: they’re not properly educated about it. The local news stations sometimes chat about such elections, but a lot of the time it’s an afterthought, when it comes to publicly letting it be known an election is coming up.
You would think it’s something that would be talked about for weeks on TV or in the newspaper. Let’s rewind on the newspaper because I don’t think many people read the paper anymore, especially not the younger generation. I used to read the paper religiously, but then prices kept going up and up and up, and the size of the paper got smaller and smaller and smaller. I mean I remember my local newspaper having like 6 to 7 sections, with different fold outs. Today the paper is still a broadsheet, but a very demure one (when I say that I mean its small in size).
It would take you more than 20 to 30 minutes to read everything, whereas in the past, you could be reading the newspaper for hours. Why does that matter? Things like local politics are not being highlighted as much because they don’t sell papers unless a scandal is involved with it. I went to my polling location this week and I was the sixth person to vote at my precinct. Granted, I was at the polls at like 7:30 a.m., that was around 30 minutes after they opened, but I just cannot pull myself not to vote.
Do not ask me why, but I feel guilty if I don’t vote and that’s probably a good thing. I shouldn’t take the opportunity to cast a ballot as a something minimal. Why? There were people who couldn’t vote for years, decades, centuries, so if I have this privilege, I’m going to take it. I always say the only reason you should not vote is if you’re dead or just beyond incapacitated to the point that it’s not possible. Even then you can claim an absentee ballot and have someone mail it for you.
There were people I talked to who looked at me crazy, when I asked them if they voted. It just made me put my head down. Your local election has the ability to put people into office or keep them out of office that will ultimately determine the taxes you pay, if the minimum wage in the city you work in goes up or down, laws or ordinances that are passed that can directly impact you and your children’s future, the list goes on and on. You’re voting for judges who are put into place who have significant power when it comes to ensuring criminals stay behind or get out on bail. Property taxes, mileages on community programs and public transit and the list goes on and on and on.
By not voting, you’re sometimes allowing the people you don’t want in office, the opportunity to get in office because their supporters are gonna vote, but his/her opponents supporters may not because they mistakenly believe their vote doesn’t count. You couldn’t be more wrong with that assertion. Never assume anything when it comes to politics, the moment you do, is the moment you’ve made the mistake which could come back and bite you directly in the butt.
Why does it hurt? Once some people are in office they get the opportunity for 1 year, 2 years, 4 years or 6 years to cause all sorts of damage, and by the time you realize it, it’s already too late. Take a moment to realize that local government should be your top priority when it comes to elections. It holds a lot more power than you could ever imagine.
