Election day is just around the corner, and it is important to get as many people out there voting as possible. I am sure you have witnessed many people say that they are not going to vote because they do not believe that their votes matter. Many people do not care about politics, and that is okay, but it is still important to vote. Just like anything else there are positives that will come with voting and there are negatives that will come with not voting.

Some people forget that voting is a right that the citizens of the United States have earned. There are some people still alive today that did not always have that right. It was only a couple of generations ago that women got the right to vote. Think about that one for second. Some of your grandmas and great grandmas saw a time where they were not allowed to vote because of their sex.

The Nineteenth Amendment was ratified in 1920, giving women the right to vote, but that still didn't mean that everyone could vote. After the era of women's suffrage many African-Americans, Latinos, Asians and Native Americans and people with disabilities still struggled with many issues to gain and exercise their rights to vote. Not to mention everyone should be thankful for their right to vote because in some countries it is not as easy, or even as safe to vote. For example, in places like Afghanistan voters have to deal with terrorist violence and often risk their own lives to vote.

When people think about the election day they generally associate it with voting for the president, but the president isn't the only thing on the ballot. There are still two other branches of government you need to consider while voting. The ballot also consists of people running for House and Senate, how much a president can do depends on whether their party controls the House or the Senate. If neither the House or the Senate is controlled by the president's party then the presidents actions will be limited, due to checks and balances.

Currently, the United States Supreme Court is down a justice, as a result of the death of Justice Scalia. The president has the authority to appoint a new justice with the approval of Congress. Voting to ensure that the House and Senate are made up of the right people, prevents the president from appointing someone who, us citizens, might not see as beneficial.

Most importantly your vote is your voice. Voting is the most effective way to back the issues that you care about and to elect the representatives that you think can get that job done best. Voting is a civic duty that allows you to express yourself and your opinions about public affairs. Not only do you have a say in the federal government, but you also vote on local government issues and it is important to have representatives that will effectively protect the citizens and change issue on that local level.