I have been able to vote for two years, and you are the first high office I have the right to vote for. I do not know who you are. I do not know how you will win. I do not know what the next four years will bring. What I do know is that I, and the rest of the country, will be watching your every move, meticulously.

We will be watching to see if you are just another politician who gives out promises you cannot keep. We will be watching to see if your "values" change in the Washington death pit. Watching. Because that is all we can do in our homes. Watch and wait. But with all the hoping and all the prayer, I know you will never read this letter. You will never come to knock on my door, ask for a glass of sweet tea and chat about your policies and plans. I am only a college student who has no idea the pressures or expectations you face. All I can do is sit behind a computer and write. As a college student, I know how surreal the words "next four years of your life" sound. But that understanding does not excuse you from the things we voters need from you.

I need to know my fellow Americans and my own safety is a priority. That we "make a difference." Maybe not in the grand scheme of thing, but that because my life is important to one person that my life in fact matters. That my friends who are lesbian, gay and other LGBT members of society will be unafraid to live in their communities.

I need to know that my education and those who follow me is taken seriously. Not made into a scary, unattainable goal. Knowledge is the one thing in the world that can never be taken once attained. Everyone deserves the chance to reach greatness. Via musical arts or science. Make these programs and arts and classes and teachers a priority. That teachers are not using their own money to provide their students with supplies. That all schools are treated and budgeted equally.

I need to know that those who go many nights without sleep to protect me, domestically and overseas, will also be protected by you. That after twenty years of service a soldier comes home to a complicated health care system and unable to get a job. Someone who gave up Christmases and birthdays with their own family should be thanked every day by every person they see. It is your job to respect them, salute them, and know that they alone are our, your voters, defense. YOU have to know that the tough decisions to be made are yours alone but you still represent us, the nation.

I need to know that you understand our history. Our history as a nation made up of multiple backgrounds and cultures, not cast out and treated as a disease. That they are allowed to be proud of where they came from and still manage to be a U.S. citizen. But they must obtain this citizenship. A citizenship that might be strenuous but not invasive or offensive. That you will extend kindness to these people, as they look to our country as a safe place to live.

But the most important thing I could ever need from a presidential leader is a human. I do not need a Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, or even an Independent. A person who will stop fueling a divisive nation. I don't need someone who will go on TV and make jokes like a comedian. I don't need someone who will scream and act like a fool in front of world leaders. I don't need someone who has their own agenda and lobbyist pals that they are preoccupied with. I need a person with clear goals and even clearer plans. A person who is unapologetically able to stand up for what they think is right, but still manage to have some tact and grace. I do not think the president I hope for exists. I think the odds are against my country to find peace.

As a bright-eyed twenty-something I will respect the Oval Office but I do not have to respect the person who sits in it.

Best of luck,

A person who is write-in voting for her dog