Presidential elections are coming up, and I can finally vote! This is a time in my life that my parents have prepared me for in the past few years. I am firmly convinced that as an American citizen, voting is an important rite of passage once you come of age. You should always exercise your right to vote, no matter what election is being held. Being able to finally vote and have a say in who is in charge of my country is a big deal. I should be excited.....right? Wrong.

I, like many other people, have come to the conclusion that the two presidential candidates will most likely be Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Rather than being filled with excitement at the prospect of voting in my first presidential election, I am filled with dismay. This is so not what I pictured when I imagined voting. Thus, I am forced to consider my options. I'm not really looking forward to living in a country where either Trump or Clinton is in charge. So what do I do?

Honestly, my first instinct was to move as far away as possible. Could I escape this madness and move to Canada? My dad's family hails from Nova Scotia, and I'm fairly sure I could make a pretty comfortable life fishing off of piers and eating lobster every night for dinner. However, the commute to Clinton, MS, might be a little long. Thus, I'm forced to consider my in-country options.

I have come to the conclusion that I will have to vote for one of these two candidates. The prospect of this does not fill me with joy. There are major issues with both political parties. Trump is an out-and-out racist and sexist. He is politically incorrect and is majorly egotistical. However, on the flip side, Clinton is no better. She seems to have trouble with simple things such as telling the truth or treating her employees with respect. Both of these candidates are political nightmares, and the day I vote for one of them will be an extremely depressing day.

So who do you vote for when neither party is the least bit appealing? I'm not going to lie, I have no clue. I could examine their backgrounds, and question whether their careers and lives would make them suitable presidents. However, examining their backgrounds fills me with doom and gloom. Trump seems to have made a questionable amount of racial slurs against the Mexican population. Clinton seems to enjoy smear-campaigning her husband's many (alleged) mistresses. So what on earth could these candidates possibly do to earn my vote? Honestly, it boils down to the staff they surround themselves with. If the candidates are smart, they will choose an educated, intelligent vice presidential running mate. The people they hire to work for them should be smart, politically savvy people. If they are aware of their political strengths and weaknesses, they will ally themselves with people who are good at what they are not good at. Thus, they will have people on their team with strengths that they do not possess themselves. However, this may be too much to ask. Both parties seem to have multiple shortcomings when it comes to making good decisions. This election may be a disaster, and when I say “may be”, I mean “is likely to be”.

However, there is one highlight: Trump and Clinton will be forced to debate at some point or another. Trump is a wild card and will say whatever he can, whether it's politically correct or not. Clinton has thin skin and will fly off the handle when people question completely legitimate things, such as her confusing, illegal usage of a private internet server to discuss top secret American matters. As America descends into madness, one thing is for sure: these debates will be hilarious. All hell is about to break loose, and I can't wait.