Voting: Your Power Tool

On October 18, I posted to Facebook:

“If you don't want any more of your rights taken away, please vote.

Florida arrested nineteen people (mostly individuals who had completed their sentences) and voted. Thirteen were AA. Laws around restoring voting rights to people formerly in the custody of the state vary from state to state. In some states, restoration of voting rights depends on the nature of an offense.

One of those arrested said that a clerk at the DMV encouraged him to register to vote even though the man said that he wasn't sure that he was eligible. The clerk assured him that since he had completed his sentence, he could vote. That turned out not to be true.

Voting can now be a crime? Talk about voter suppression.

An aside: In many counties where prisons are located, incarcerated people are counted among the population, which means more federal monies. In this case, having committed an offense does not matter.

I do not care who you vote for--actually, I do--just VOTE!”

A few days later, I posted…

“For non-voters who complain about any number of problems with government and politics. Put your vote where your mouth is.

Not voting is the same as saying, "I do not care about my community, city, state, or country."

YOU control government with your vote. That is why politicians pursue your vote or, in other instances, want to SUPPRESS your right to vote. They recognize your power.

Running a Republic is messy business. You get some wins and some losses. We live a big, diverse country with competing needs and interests.

Those who speak loudest with their vote win in the end.”

If I seem passionate about voting, it’s because I am.

A few weeks ago, I contacted my adult grandchildren to ask if they had registered to vote in the midterms. Most said “yes,” others agreed to register. I trust they will follow through.

We give politicians enormous power to decide on measures that affect our daily lives: healthcare, taxation, education, infrastructure, even marriage.

The “Vote” gives us the power to express disagreement or displeasure with legislation in any of these areas.

Voting is a tool—among others—that allows us to choose candidates whose ideology or interests line up with our own, or to roust those whose views are in opposition.

Historically, Black Americans have had lower voter turnouts than whites.

According to the Brennan Center for Justice (BCJ), in the 2020 presidential election “70.9 percent of white voters cast ballots compared with only 58.4 percent of nonwhite voters — a disparity that will worsen with new restrictive voting laws.”

New, insidious voting restrictions curtail the constitutional right of all Americans, especially those in communities of color.

The BCJ cites five of these laws.

Florida

S.B. 90 severely limits the availability and accessibility of mail ballot drop boxes and requires voters to put their state ID number or SSN on mail ballots applications, without providing an alternative for voters who lack such information.

Georgia

S.B. 202 makes it a crime to distribute water or snacks to voters waiting in line despite long waiting times.

Iowa

S.F. 413 imposes new penalties and restrictions on election officials, including criminal prosecution, if they do not implement the law’s new voter-roll purge provisions.

Montana

H.B. 176 eliminates registration on Election Day, a policy that Montana voters have relied on for years.

Texas

S.B.1 threatens election officials and workers with new criminal penalties for expanding voter access or even encouraging eligible voters to request mail ballots.

Note: All these states have Republican governors.

If Republicans gain control of the House and the Senate, we can expect a national ban on abortions, completion of the border wall, cuts to Social Security and Medicare, loosening of energy regulations, disbanding of the Jan. 6 committee, and cuts in spending for climate change.

These actions will harm women, immigrants, seniors, and Black Americans.

The late Representative John Lewis stated, “The vote is precious. It is the most powerful, nonviolent tool we have in a democracy.”

We, The People, make history, not governments.

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