With the upcoming presidential election, you’ve probably been discussing Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders, and the rest of the ragtag band of candidates in enormous detail. You might even be discussing them right now. From their stances on abortion and immigration, down to who made the dumbest statement at the last debate, you’ve been talking about it since the campaign began a few months ago and you’ll be talking about it until November 8, 2016.
Election Day. The Tuesday after the first Monday in November (confusing, I know). It’s the day millions swarm to the nearest school to cast their ballots. Of the voting age population, however, not nearly enough people cast a vote. Since the 1970’s, approximately 55 percent of eligible citizens have actually voted in a presidential election.
This is a crime. As a citizen of the United States in the 21st century, you have rights you may not have had 50+ years ago. Before 1870, non-white men couldn’t vote; before 1920, women couldn’t vote; before 1924, Native Americans couldn’t vote; and before 1971, young adults ages 18 to 21 couldn’t vote. They held rallies, petitioned for change, protested on the National Mall. These are rights people fought tooth and nail to have so that they and their children could have a say in how the government runs their lives. It represents the chance to change your life and better your future. Voting is an essential part of the American Dream.
While everyone should be voting, there’s a reason so many people don’t. The entire concept has been so idealized, and the pressure is on to choose our next president. So far all this article has done is urge you to vote. The decision should be an easy one. With the media covering the campaign from beginning to end, everyone knows the latest news about the candidates. The reason almost half the country isn’t voting is because there are no good candidates to support.
Hillary Clinton is a liar. After years in the White House, she’s become an expert politician, fabricating stories with inconsistencies and flip-flopping on the issues. She has compromised confidential government information by conducting business on her personal devices that aren’t protected from hackers and then she lied about it. Bernie Sanders, on the other hand, is accused of being a socialist, although he claims he’s a social democrat. Unfortunately for him, it’s too late for most people to change their minds about him and because of the Cold War, it’s difficult for voters to make the distinction between socialism and communism.
On the republican side, there’s Donald Trump whose ridiculous antics start more drama than all the other candidates combined (not to mention the many racist comments he has made). He has no experience in politics and while many people appreciate his fresh approach to the political sphere, his lack of knowledge is disconcerting. Marco Rubio is criticized for being too young and therefore also too inexperienced to be president. He is also criticized for being untrustworthy because of he used the Republican Party’s credit card for his own personal expenses. Ted Cruz is accused of lying on the campaign trail and of stealing votes from fellow republican candidate Ben Carson in the Iowa caucus.
These are your options, and honestly, who actually wants to vote for any of them? Every four years, the public is presented with new and old candidates that seem to vary from bad to worse and every four years, half the population doesn’t show up at the polls.
So sure, you owe it to those who fought before you and to yourself to vote. It’s your civic duty, your responsibility as a participating citizen in your community. But when it comes down to it, nobody trusts these people to run our country so it’s easy to understand why so many people don’t bother showing up.
At the end of the day, there’s a choice. Either stay home and let everyone else make the decision or suck it up and choose someone - maybe a third party candidate nobody’s heard of. Because this is your country and your right. Don’t waste it.
