Nick Explains: 10 reasons you should vote!

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Photo from the U.S. Embassy in Chile

“I voted” stickers in English and Spanish, Virginia, USA, November 2014. (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) photo.)

Nick Sack, World News Editor
Oct 21, 2020

1. Voting is an opportunity for you to shape the future you want for yourself and your children. You can take a stand on issues like minimum wage, climate change, local education, etc.

2. “Decisions are made by those who show up,” said President Josiah Bartlet, one of my favorite characters from “The West Wing.” I don’t want others making decisions for me, so I’m absolutely going to show up.

3. If you have a job, you likely pay income tax. The people who get elected decide how that money is used, so if you want to help decide that, you need to make your voice heard.

With the U.S Capitol in the back ground demonstrators march on Pennsylvania Avenue during the Women’s March in Washington, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

4. So many people have worked so hard to guarantee your right to vote. For instance, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, who formed the National Woman Suffrage Association in 1869 and fought for the 19th Amendment. Don’t let their efforts go to waste!

5. Even if you live in an area that heavily supports a party you don’t prefer, your vote will contribute to the possibility of change and may even influence elected officials to create policy that more accurately aligns with what you want to see in politics.

6. You may not care about the election today, but you can’t guarantee that you won’t in four years. You may be looking to buy a house, or start a business, or maybe you’ll be reliant on food stamps. Vote for your future.

“President Trump Nominates Judge Amy Coney Barrett for Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court” by The White House is marked with CC PDM 1.0 (The White House)

7. Vote for your rights. There may be a new Supreme Court Justice in a few weeks who will have a say in major cases, such as abortion rights, same-sex marriage or the Affordable Care Act. Who you vote for in the presidential election will potentially decide who presides over these cases.

8. Vote because not everyone can. Felons and those deemed “mentally incapacitated” cannot vote. Not everyone is afforded the same rights, so it is your duty to represent those people and get to the voting booth!

9. Local elections are especially important. Your vote will have a much larger depth in a local community, so if you research the candidates, you can cast your vote and make a difference to elect the people you want to serve you. 

10. Once you’re done voting, you can take a super cool picture with your “I Voted” sticker to show off to all of your friends and family!