Throughout my years of diving into the pool of politics, I have learned that when voting for someone, whether for president of the United States or someone running for Congress, you should never vote for someone based solely on one issue or even what their party is. Voting is a lot more complicated than that (and should be). Voting is what makes the country go round, as it is what makes us a democracy, not a an authoritarian ruled government. To have that right taken away from us would be a complete violation of everything the United States stands for. Things have changed a lot in our country, but voting will not.
When thinking about politics, I can remember a time when I was taught at my junior high school where we were told, "If you support abortion, you are a Democrat. If you don't, you are a Republican." As I grew up, I began to see that abortion was a very complicated issue that was not just black and white and your stance on one issue does not define your party. Personally, I don't even think we should use the party system anymore. Vote for the person, not the party.
To be honest, I personally support humans who believe that all humans are equal, and that we all deserve to be treated equal under the laws across our nation: the right to chose what we do with our own bodies, the right to marry whom we love, and the right to work where we please without having to worry about discrimination. But this stance is not the sole reason I am a Democrat. I share many Democratic values when it comes to the economy -- not all values, but most.
I have met lots of people around my age who vote for one party (usually Republican) solely because their parents told them so. They would say, "My parents raised me right." My response was, "Did they raise you right enough, though, to even think for yourself?" It's aggravating seeing young people allowing their parents make their own decisions about how the country should be ran, even when they don't agree with it. Lots of people don't want to go against their parents' wishes, but one lesson we must learn in this life is that your parents are not always right. We hope that they are looking out for our best interests, but sometimes, they are not. In these situations, you must go with your gut instinct, not what someone else is telling you.
Voting is a huge part of our civil duty from living in the United States. When you don't vote, you have no right to complain when the situation does not go the way you wanted. If you care so much about an election or a certain policy, please do your country a favor and vote. Some citizens may not use their right to vote, but it is a right that we cannot afford to lose.
