Five Reasons Why (and Where and How) You Need to Vote!
There has certainly not been any lack of coverage regarding tomorrow’s midterm election. But rather than relaying a message of hope, the news reads like a laundry list of fears. Not just with regard to subjects like immigration, but also in voter suppression and confusion. Many people are confused as to whether they are eligible to vote, where to vote, and what they need to know about this election.
No doubt that voting can be complicated and tedious with endless measures on the ballot, and candidates for offices which we had no idea existed. While campaigning in Georgia last week, Oprah spoke about voting our values. To me, that means acting out of either love or fear. Every emotion boils down to one or the other. Joy, happiness, and laughter equal love. Anger, hatred, and name-calling equate to fear. Personally, I want to act out of love, concern and compassion rather than judgment and assumption.
But that mini-philosophy lesson isn’t actionable.
So let’s get to the DO and DON’T list of what happens on election day, and how to prep before:
1) DO Vote. (duh!)
If you need help finding your polling place, we can help here. Make sure to check the voting hours, as they vary. If you need a ride, Uber and Lyft are both providing free rides to the poll. You can bring your kids, and do bring snacks, as the lines might be long.
In the majority of states, employers are required to provide you time off to vote. Check here to see if yours is one of them.
2) DON’T be intimidated by a lack of knowledge, or if you don’t know every candidate.
If you need to research the candidates, issues, and races you can do so here. As mentioned, there can be some obscure measures or offices on the ballot, but trust me, they do matter. As Tip O’Neill famously said, “All politics are local,” and these little-known measures may have the biggest impact on your community, children, and wallet.
That being said, if you don’t have time to research every measure, it’s OK to not fill in those boxes. It’s not encouraged, but points won’t be deducted if you leave a measure blank.
3) DON’T allow them to turn you away if you are registered.
You may cast a provisional ballot, so even if there are questions, your vote will count. Double check to see if you’re registered here.
4) DO check and see if your state requires a government issued ID.
You can double check here. A number of states require first time voters to bring an ID or government issued document (think utility bill) if they registered to vote online. But no matter what, you may always cast a provisional ballot while double checking your voting status. Never leave a polling station without casting a provisional ballot.
5) DO think intersectionally.
I’ve said this before, and I will say it again: there is no dividing line between racism and sexism. In order to cure one, we must cure the other. There is no dividing line between sexism and homophobia, transphobia, immigrant status, freedom of religion, etc. Either all of us are free, or none of us are free.
Also on that note, this is a borrowed planet. What are you planning to leave to the next generation? Because no amount of wealth or economic security is going to assist a generation who inherits a dead planet with contaminated food and water. A planet riddled with violence and inequality doesn’t bode well either.
In that way politics should be sacred.
For too long we’ve allow a few (primarily white, male, and wealthy) individuals to govern the majority. Tomorrow is the day we all step up, declare that it matters, and pay homage to those who have gone before us. Every time I cast a ballot, I think of my grandmother, Kathryn Blank. She was born without the right to vote, and yet despite her second-class citizen status, single handedly supported a family of five by working as a nurse through the Great Depression. She sacrificed much with little to no acknowledgement for all she gave. I won’t let her sacrifice, or the sacrifice of any of our mothers or grandmothers, to go in vain.
