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My First Time…Voting

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at BU chapter.

A few days ago, the conservative website RedState.com published a pretty scathing op-ed about – surprise, surprise – Obama’s newest ad campaign.

This ad, which features the Girls sensation Lena Dunham, compares losing one’s virginity to casting one’s first ballot. Yeah, I’d definitely call it controversial in a trying-too-hard-to-be-controversial sort of way. But Breeanne Howe writes, “One has to wonder, is there any point at which the main stream media and the public get some self-respect and toss out this loser?”

Okay, that’s a little harsh. But I agree with Howe’s sentiment, just as I agree with Dunham’s – the office of the presidency (and our responsibility to elect him/her) – is not something to be taken lightly. As a “virgin voter,” I definitely find myself honored and occasionally overwhelmed by this responsibility. But I am equally overwhelmed by how lightly both of these campaigns seem to take their responsibility to educate the public in a truthful way. Whether it’s Obama’s cartoonish Sesame Street ad or Romney’s misleading attacks on Obamacare, these candidates haven’t exactly met my expectations of a president. And when it comes to their own plans, all these men seem interested in are stale, poll-tested platitudes that only produce a confused and uninformed electorate.

As the election looms closer, I can’t help but think that I don’t want to lose my “voting virginity” to either of these men. What do you think, HCers? Are you excited or anxious about your “first time”?

 

Elyssa is a "New Yourker" who has somehow ended up in Boston. She is currently studying journalism at Boston University and is excited to be the Campus Correspondent for the BU branch of Her Campus! She also enjoys theatre, frozen yogurt, and obsessively watching "Dancing with the Stars." When not doing any of above, she can be found quoting "Pirates of the Caribbean."