Its that time of year again. Everyone’s favorite time of year on Facebook. Yes, I’m talking about Election Season. It’s the midterms, so that means we aren’t voting for president, but we are voting for members of Congress who are just as important, arguably more important than the president.
Millennials, this is our chance to make a change and have our voices heard. Voting is one of the best privileges we have as Americans. It is so important to exercise this right. There have been people who came before you that have worked hard and fought for your right to vote so please don’t waste it.
On November 6, 2018, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, 35 seats in the Senate, and 39 governorships are open, as well as the state and local positions. These positions depend on votes from states and counties, so check which ones you are registered in. You can Google your state and county to see where and when you can vote.
So why should you even vote? Why should you even care? You should vote because these people represent you and your various interests. They will be voting on whether you have the ability to own guns, whether your taxes are increased, whether you will be able to get more loans for college, and many more things that will affect your everyday life. You will also be voting for your state positions. These people represent you and all of your interests. Your local state representatives will be voting on state and local taxes, road conditions, things that can happen in your little brothers and sisters’ public school, and much more, just like your congressional reps. All of these positions are very important and they do affect you. You have a chance to have a voice.
So who should you vote for? That’s a question you can only answer yourself. I can’t tell you who you should vote for. I know who I want you to vote for, but my values may be different from yours. When you vote, you vote for someone who represents YOU. You vote for someone who you believe will vote for the things you that also believe. Your beliefs come from your worldview. Take a moment and think about what’s important to you. To figure this out you need to do some research. You don’t have to spend, like, 60 hours with charts and color-coded binders (I mean if you do, I respect that a lot). You can spend about 30 minutes, maybe 45, researching. Google is an amazing tool. You can Google your county and see who is on the ballot for all of the positions, then you can Google the name of the person and read about their beliefs and how they have voted on various issues in the past.
How do I vote? First things first, you need to register to vote. Most of us did when we got our license. But if not, you can go to www.turbovote.org to register. It is an amazing resource and you will be able to apply for your absentee ballot there. Absentee ballots are the usual way college students can vote. These ballots allow you vote from where you are when you are not able to vote in your home state or county. Deadlines and application requirements vary from state to state. So once again you have to do a little bit of research. It will be best to get that all straightened out now instead of later.
So my fellow, Millennials, now is the time. We are able to make our voices heard and we can make real change in the positive. Don’t take this ability for granted. There are countries where people are not able to vote or the votes are not free or fair. I personally don’t care as much about who you vote for as much as that you vote. And remember you don’t have a right to complain if you don’t vote. So happy voting, my friends.