As the presidential race heats up, caucuses and primaries will be held across the country and with them, many hot topics will be discussed.
Everything from personal attacks by candidates to talk of foreign policy has become common dialogue in the United States. The range of what is talked about is wide, especially with mavericks Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders bringing up controversial topics.
Each candidate will be asking for votes, but they should be asking for each and every eligible person to exercise his or her democratic right to vote, no matter whom he or she chooses. Voter turnout in the U.S. is among the lowest in the developed world. In the last presidential election, according to The American Presidency Project, only 54.87 percent of eligible voters submitted their ballot and, according to Al Jazeera America, “only 42 percent of Americans voted in the 2014 midterm elections, the lowest level of voter turnout since 1978.”
It’s almost criminal that only about half of eligible voters choose to have an impact on the future of this country. Perhaps, one reason that many people don’t vote is because they believe their vote doesn’t matter, but that could not be farther from the truth. The 2000 presidential election, between George Bush and Al Gore, for example, was decided by the Supreme Court because the vote in Florida was so close that it was impossible to call a clear victor. Needless to say, then, every vote counts. This month’s Democratic caucus in Iowa again showed that, as Hillary Clinton won with 49.9 percent of the vote compared to Sanders’ 49.6 percent. Every vote counts. Imagine if 80 percent of eligible voters actually went to the polls. Our elected officials would truly represent the choice of the people.
Our country was founded by people searching for a place to exercise choice and to govern themselves in a rational system not founded on “divine right.” Why are we not taking advantage of our freedom and responsibility? The democratic system that was set up by our founding fathers only works if everyone votes and those voters are educated. When half of us vote, our democratic system is failing.
Thousands of people around the world die gruesome deaths each year fighting for the right to vote. They know that who their leaders are and what they stand for make a real difference in their everyday lives. When we don’t use our freedom to vote, we are disrespecting our founders, abdicating the choices we have been given and making a mockery of the idea of “government for the people and by the people.” When fewer than half of us vote, what does our liberty mean?
As a country, we should be encouraging people to vote instead of making it increasingly harder. We need to stop limiting people’s right to vote through new voter ID laws and taking away early registration. Our elected officials should truly be the people’s choice, not 50 percent of our population’s choice. The U.S. needs to begin to nurture a sentiment that voting is the most important thing we can do on any given Tuesday.
Seth Marvin-Vanderryn is a sports editor at El Diablo, the Durango High School student newspaper. His parents are David Marvin and Judith Vanderryn of Durango.
