Earlier this year, I was playing in a golf fund-raiser for a local candidate. When we finished, the congressman asked one of the course employees if he was voting. He responded, “No, I don’t know the issues and I don’t want to be an uneducated voter.” Fair enough, the congressman said and asked the employee what he wanted to know. His response was, “Nothing. I am happier this way.”
Wow, was my response. I wondered out loud why a citizen of this country would not want to have a say in the way he was governed. For him, it was just easier to stay out of it. And, in America, that’s his choice. And, I think he has a point. If he is too lazy to educate himself and make an informed vote, maybe it’s best not to vote. Sometimes I don’t know anything about the school board members or the county sheriff candidates, so I leave it blank.
My congressman leaned over to me and said, “Unfortunately, 80% of the people who vote cannot tell you why they vote for someone.” In other words, the majority of individuals are uninformed voters. And, just remember, their vote counts just as much as a vote from an informed voter. There is no law that prohibits ignorant or clueless citizens from voting. So, “He seems like a good guy to have beer with,” matters just as much as, “I agree with his foreign policy on China and what it will mean for middle-class jobs.”
And, it’s hard to be an educated voter. There are so many candidates and so many issues. You have to decide on president, US Senators, US Congressmen, state representatives, judges, school board members, sheriff… They also ask you to vote on important issues with federal, state and community implications – like Proposal A, Proposal B…
So, to become an educated voter, there are three simple steps. First, you have to know what you stand for and believe. This requires some soul-searching and thought. The interesting part is that your views will change over time just as you do. Second, you have to educate yourself on the candidates and the issues. This takes some time. Finally, you have to select candidates that align with your views. Some people are “single issue” voters like “pro-choice vs. pro-life,” while others consider all the views of a candidate before voting. Just like buying a new home that doesn’t check all of your boxes, I find no candidate fully aligns with all of my views.
“They” say that this is the most important election of our lifetime. I have been hearing that since the first time I voted in 1988 as a high school senior. That means I have voted in eight presidential elections, and I am about to vote in my 9th one in exactly 14 days. I view it as my patriotic duty. I know who I am going to vote for and I know why. If pressed, I could provide the top 10 reasons for my decision. The irony is that another educated voter will vote for the other guy because she/he disagrees with all of my reasons. I know that because my yard has signs supporting one candidate and my neighbor has signs supporting the other candidate. This plays out millions of times on election day. That’s America. One person, one vote. No one person has any more power than me when it comes to voting. Democracy at its finest.
Your Turn: I think it is your patriotic duty to become an educated voter and vote. Do you agree or disagree and why?
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I agree that it is important to be informed.
I think that it is important to be an informed voter and i agree.
I agree because people have the power to vote for who they want to be our president. If u didn’t vote then u don’t have a right to judge a person who is in office
I think you should be educated but if you don’t vote u can’t be mad about the outcome.
We should be informed but in most conversations it is better to keep your opinion to yourself because both people in the arguement could hate eachother after.
I agree, I think that people should get an education on both sides of the table, to see which one they like more or not.
It is important to he informed nd know what’s going on, but you do not have to go out of your way to express what you think alot. Because there is a big number of people who will always try and argue with you.
I agree because people should be informed on current events and policies that will possibly effect them.
It’s very important to be informed so you know what your doing.
I agree because if we want our voices and opinions to be heard we have to vote. We have to be informed so we can support the correct person to represent our opinions.
You can’t be mad about what the outcome is if you didn’t even have the audacity to vote. You can’t judge what happens and what other people vote.
Being an educated voter is very important. It’s critical you know the plans of the person you voted for. Although if you do not vote you don’t have the right to not be happy about the outcome because you had the chance and did not take it to voice your opinion
I think it is our duty to become an informed voter as it allows us all to have a say in our democracy
I agree that you should be an educated voter in all elections, and that the candidates should then lead and fight for his supporters as well as the rest of the American people. Just like on a sports team, the head coach/ leaders should give all members a say in team decisions.
I believe it’s important to know what you stand for and to stand for it, with that comes a responsibility to be educated on said subject. If you don’t know what you’re talking about, then it’s best to say nothing at all.
I agree because people have the power to vote for who they want to be our president. If u didn’t vote then u don’t have a right to judge a person who is in office
I think that it is important to be informed so that you have facts to back up which side you stand for
I agree, because voting without knowing what you are voting for is not right. You shouldn’t vote for the party, but rather the candidate. People fought for our current voting rights, so we should use them.
If your not informaned on the candidate then you need to be cause its the person who will be leading your country.
It’s important to vote based on what you think, and not because of what others tell you. I also agree you should be educated on voting as it is your rightful duty as an American
I believe it is our Civic duty and responsibility to vote. Voting is our representation in government. If you are able to vote you should use your vote to improve our nation because your vote shapes America.
I agree, because watch side should get an education
Yes I think it is important to know each candidate and there policies before voting
Know what you are talking about before you argue
Educating yourself on matters like these is so you have a better understanding of the political climate and can pick who you think is the best option.
I think it is incredibly important to be informed because the president will lead this country for the next four years.
I agree, but I think it’s hard to become an educated voter because all information is biased. Even the omission of information is bias,, so it’s hard to really make a fair judgement.
If you are not educated you don’t need to have any say with anything political
I believe that if you are not informed or correctly know the information then you should not vote. It’s very important to be educated in such a important thing.
I agree, because watch side should go to school because it’s important
I think it is important to be informed but if you aren’t you either should or shouldn’t say anything until you are.
I think you should only vote if you are truly educated and know what’s going on otherwise if you don’t it’s not a good choice to just randomly choose between the two of them.
It is important to be an informed voter. Some people may say that your one vote doesn’t matter, but each vote counts so voting for a candidate that you support is important.
I 100% agree with the idea that you have to be an informed voter because your vote can truly make a difference for the whole country and what the country experiences after the election. I also think that it is important to be educated so that you can see exactly what the candidates are for, and not just what they are perceived to be.
I agree, I think that you should at least get educated on what’s going on politics wise, whether you vote or not.
I agree completely. I think that voting is what keeps our country as equalized as possible. I think that if we want to be treated as a democracy, then more people need to start to vote, especially in this election.
I believe that voting is very important for the future and status of our country. If you have the privilege of being able to access the media, television, news sources, books etc., then you should educate yourself and vote. If you do not vote then your voice is not being heard and you are not contributing to make change in the United States.
I do think that is important for everyone that has the right to vote will utilize that right. The outcome of every election affects everyone personally, so in my opinion, if they don’t vote then they don’t have the right to complain about policies that were put into place because they didn’t use their valuable input.
I do think this is important. This is bc whoever has the right to vote should. It’s a privilege that some don’t have, so why waste it. It’s good for you and our country’s outcome.
I agree because I think education is a cornerstone of democracy.
I think it is super important to be an educated voter and to vote! It is not fair to your country and your people to not vote. Every vote counts and your vote helps. The election decides the next 4 years of how our country runs. We need to vote
I think you have a duty to vote and have a voice but I think that is your choice whether you act upon it or not. You have that role as a citizen but if you don’t take it on as a role then that is your decision.
I think that if you care about your country’s issues then it is your duty to be an educated voter, but if you really don’t care about those issues then I guess that’s your prerogative. But if you have issues with how the country is run or need federal aid, then you should educate yourself and vote.
It’s important to be informed for who you’re voting for because you want a quality vote over a quantity of votes that are not thought through.
Your vote matters and everyone should have a vote
It is important to he informed nd know what’s going on, but you do not have to go out of your way to express what you think about. Because there is a big number of people who will always try and argue with you.
i think it is important because i do
Yes it is our duty to be an informed voter
I agree because people should be in formed and paying attention to the daily things that are helping in our world because those events will possibly effect them.
We should be informed but in most conversations, it is better to keep your opinion to yourself because both people in the argument could hate each other after.
I usually think it’s a good idea to keep opinions yourself
I agree because people have the power to vote for who they want to be our president. If you didn’t vote then u don’t have a right to judge a person who is in office.
I agree because people have the power to vote for who they want to be our president. If you didn’t vote then u don’t have a right to judge a person who is in office. If you are not even able to vote I also dont think you should be worrying about who is going to be president.
If you are not even able to vote I also dont think you should be worrying about who is going to be president.
I think it is our duty to become an informed voter as it allows us all to have a say in our democracy
I think it is our job to become an informed because it allows us to have a say in our democracy and if you don’t vote then you can’t complain about the outcome
I think you should be educated but if you don’t vote u can’t be mad about the outcome.
It is your duty to your country to learn and vote in order to make life better for everyone
I agree because if we want our voices and opinions to be heard that we have to vote. We have to be informed so we can support the correct person to represent our opinions.
I liked how you listed the three things that you need to be aware of before you can vote. My daughter just turned eighteen and has been wondering how she can be a good voter and participant of the elections coming up. I’ll be sure to mention this to her since I think that knowing what you stand for and believe can really help her to find people and policies that she agrees with.