We’re going to have a quick social studies lesson here.

While I am well aware that many of you think that voting is most important during the presidential elections that occur every four years, this could not be more wrong.

I’d like to introduce you to this little concept known as the Electoral College. The reason Donald Trump is our standing president and not Hillary Clinton. The reason George W. Bush was the standing president and Al Gore was not. The reason elections get thrown for a loop.

No, the Electoral College is not a real college.

It's not an educational institute. This is a process. It is a group of people who are appointed to count Congress’ votes (electoral votes), and based on those votes, decide who the president will be. It is our representatives who are voting, who have the end all, say all in who the president is.

The popular vote doesn’t matter, and this was truly proven in the 2016 presidential election. The popular vote in the presidential election doesn’t matter as much as smaller elections.

Do I need to say it again? I will.

The popular vote does not matter as much in the presidential elections. While representatives may vote for the president based on who their citizens are most commonly voting for, at the end of the day, they get to vote for who they want, and their vote counts.

I genuinely think that many Americans forget that we are living in a representative democracy, not a direct democracy. We vote for representatives who then make laws, who then vote for president.

While you still need to vote in the presidential elections, it is so important to vote in smaller elections.

2018 is an election year. There are major races going on in many cities, but also, a House of Representatives race. The House of Representatives run for office every two years, the president runs every four, and Senate runs every six.

So, while there are not national debates going on and huge fights with a giant orange, crass pumpkin running for president, there are people running right now that need your vote. There are people running right now that are important and voting counts.

There are people running right now that can change the country, as many of us are unhappy with the current state of it.

Citizen voting counts so much more in these smaller elections than they ever will in the presidential elections. If you want to exercise your right to vote, vote in the small elections.

You get to vote every two years in this case, isn’t that fun?

Pay attention to the House of Representatives race. Pay attention to the Senate race. Vote for your city mayor. Vote in the municipal elections, for your city council members, for your judges. The presidential race is not the only one that matters.