Voter Registration

                              Voter Registration Day September 23^rd

By Albert B. Kelly

Tuesday, September 23^rd is National Voter Registration Day. The day is meant to focus attention and energy on getting unregistered people eligible to vote ahead of the November elections

There are many reasons why you should register and vote; unfortunately when we talk about why, it often comes across in the same way as a discussion on why you should eat your vegetables…because it’s good for you.

Then too, some will point out that you have a patriotic duty to vote because men and woman, over many generations, shed blood to secure and protect your right to vote. It’s true and they did; but like so much in life, if it’s not really personal for us and right up in our grill, we don’t care.

If that reasoning fails, we can point out that most people around the world don’t get to vote as we do; so you have an obligation to participate in a process that most people can only dream about. That’s also true as well, but if shed blood won’t move you, the yearnings of foreigners certainly won’t.

So no, the reason you should register and vote and get others registered and to the polls comes down to respect. What do I mean? Well, let’s consider that elected officials at all levels of government make the rules that impact your life.

If you don’t show up and vote, it means that elected officials at all levels can basically ignore you. If you don’t show up and vote, elected officials don’t really need to respect you or your needs or your opinions because you are a nonfactor.

What’s important to you? Do you think the minimum wage should be increased? Do you think we need bail reform? Do you think marijuana should not be legalized? Do you think government should have tighter regulations on banking and finance? Do you think abortion laws should be tougher?

Whatever you think largely doesn’t matter if you don’t show up and vote. The one thing elected officials respond to and even fear, is an active and engaged community or group of citizens who will come out on Election Day and vote.

Of course right about now, you might be thinking your single vote doesn’t matter. That’s the easy way out and when you consider that the 2000 presidential election probably came down to 537 shuffleboard loving voters in Palm Beach County, your vote definitely has impact in local and state elections.

You might cite the influence of money and big donors as an excuse for not voting. To that I can only say that the money will get spent anyway and laws will be enacted regardless and it will all impact your life whether you show up or not. Is it better to be ignored or respected?

It’s true, your vote will always count as a single vote and never more than a single vote; but when you join your vote and voice to other like-minded voters, now you have a “block” of perhaps dozens or hundreds or thousands. And when that happens, you’ve got someone’s attention because it matters now.

It’s the same for any community. Elected officials decide where the resources go and what gets done. Does your community get the short end of the stick because Freeholders or a State Senators or a Governor or a Congressman can afford to ignore your community because they know you don’t show up and vote?

For anyone on the margins, stuck in the shadows or the low-income end of the spectrum, they don’t have the power or access that money buys; but they do have a vote and maybe that’s the best part of all. On Election Day, the rich man’s vote has the same exact weight as the poor man’s vote…politicians fear it.

So regardless of where you stand on the issues or who your preferred candidate may be; the only way to matter-to be respected or perhaps feared-is to register and vote on Election Day. If you are not registered, you can contact your County Board of Elections and they will provide you with the form you need to get registered.

The deadline to register is October 14^th to be eligible to vote on Election Day, which is November 4^th this year; the day when we find out who will be making decisions for our communities and our lives…a process that’s best done when we’re all part of it.