Making Your Voice Count

Next Tuesday marks a really big day in the life of our nation. That may be an understatement!

By the way, if you are not sure about what I'm talking about, Tuesday, November 6th is the date of our nation's mid-term General Election. That's the day when many of us as citizens across the country will vote to elect our United States Congressional Representatives and Senators as well as many State Gubernatorial offices. Also, for many of us voters, we will have a say in which amendments are approved, which judges are retained and who may be elected in various other local offices.

I started this post stating that this is a "big day". In fact, it is for more reasons than the obvious. Some who agree with this statement would argue that those we elect next Tuesday could very well be instrumental in creating the future of our republic. This future might include how we are represented in our local, state and federal governments, which laws are created, the amount of taxation we pay, our immigration policies, possible changes to our social services and many other things.

If you favor having school choice, a smaller less restrictive government, lower taxes, establishing strong borders, better managing immigration and a less regulatory environment, you should probably vote Republican. If, instead, you favor not having school choice, increasing the size and reach of government, higher taxes, an open border policy, unlimited immigration and much more regulation, then you should be happy voting Democrat.

It is critical to really get educated on what the candidates stand for! Make sure to educate yourself.

One of the most amazing things about our republic is the fact that most of us adults have "a say-so" in what goes on in our government. I say most of us because of the voting prohibitions for convicted felons. Other than this group, we have quite an extraordinary privilege when it comes to voting. As President Abraham Lincoln declared in his infamous Gettysburg Address, ours is a “government of the people, by the people, for the people”. This declaration enshrined for us the ideal that if it's going to happen in our nation, it will only be via the permission of and through its citizens.

You may ask, "So, how can my one vote make a difference?" Perhaps you were either too young to vote then or did not vote during the 2000 Presidential election when President George W. Bush won the election over former Vice President Al Gore with a little over 500 votes from the State of Florida in his favor. Through a split decision in the U.S. Supreme Court and winning the Electoral College vote by one, it came down to our great Sunshine State that put him over.

So, when you ask how your one vote can make a difference, you can see by this example that there really is power in each of our votes. In it lies the power to elect. In it lies the power to influence policy. In it lies the power to sway family and friends.

How can your one vote make a difference? How can it not!

Educate yourself and go vote!