A Message to Apathetic Voters: Why Voting Matters

So, Midterms just happened, and a bunch of great (and not so great) things happened during that election, depending on what side of the political spectrum you’re on. This article is not an article urging people to vote blue or red – though I do have an opinion on that – but rather an explanation on why voting matters. 

Many voters, particularly young voters, believe that voting won’t – or doesn’t – affect your day-to-day life. Which I guess, technically, in the days immediately following an election, is true, but the after effects of voting will trickle in once that person takes office. Depending on the changes that person makes in legislation, those effects could be large or small.

For instance, you vote someone in on your City Council and they choose to tear down your favorite local shop – you’re definitely going to notice that. Or, in a more macro sense, if your senator votes on a bill to drastically change a healthcare bill, you’ll definitely notice that. Or if they decide to change citizenship laws in a DACA sort of way – you’ll see those changes. 

I used to believe that voting – or not voting – in an election wouldn’t affect my day-to-day life – that the change the government made didn’t really affect me and were only for show. But I grew up, I matured, and I learned that yes, those legislative measures will affect me. This was primarily shown once President Obama was elected and Obamacare was introduced. I remember this specifically because while I was too young to have my own healthcare – still not old enough, for the record – it directly influenced my parents’ healthcare choices. 

These are the kinds of choices that our legislators are making – they are the ones who get to make choices that affect everyone. Some of the effects may be long-lasting while some may not seem that big. Voting is our nation’s biggest form of advocacy and protest – we have the unique power of being able to vote out people that are corrupt or that we are unhappy with. Please don’t take that privilege and ability for granted.

Now, everyone, if you didn’t vote in this prior election, I hope this article gave a rough explanation about why it matters so much. It’s so important for people – especially young people – to use their voice. Feel free to comment down below about your choices 

• civic duty
• elections
• midterm elections
• voting