I am a public school teacher, wife,and mother of three who has increasingly lost hope in the United States and its leaders. It seems that policies and decisions are made without much thought to their impact on marginalized populations and future generations.

However, Bernie Sanders has made me become less apathetic. His policies are something I agree with: addressing climate change, supporting veterans, raising minimum wage and giving back the power to average hardworking Americans.

The first step in getting Bernie Sanders into the White House is electing him as the Democratic candidate and this can only happen if registered Democrats vote for him in the Democratic caucus on March 1, 2016. I consider myself “independent” but have recently registered as a Democrat for the sole purpose of participating in the Democratic caucus. I am writing to urge you to do the same.

Grab your driver’s license and go to www.sos.state.o.us/voter to register as a Democrat before January 1st. Time is ticking, so do it today. Together we can get this party started!

Jill Somrak

Durango