Time to Vote

By: Samantha Werry

Every four years, the presidential voting polls are open. The last time the country held the presidential elections, I was just 1 month shy of being 18, meaning, I was obviously too young to have the opportunity to vote. So if you are like me, this is your first time voting! I will admit, I was nervous to go out and vote since I had never done it before. I did not know the process as well as the older, more experienced voters. The one thing I did know is how long it would take for me to stand in line and wait to vote. I planned accordingly and made sure I had time in my day to vote without having to miss any classes.

One of my friends posted online that their classes were all canceled today in order to let them go out and vote! At first, I believed this was a great idea, but then again, it doesn't prepare us for the “real world.” Once you graduate and get a job, you have to priorities what needs to be done in the day and how. I know we are all in college, but sometimes, you need to get up early and do something important to not only yourself, but also the entire country.

Voting is incredibly important because we have the privilege of taking part in deciding the direction in which we want our country to go. People might think they would do more harm than good by voting since they do not pay attention to the polls. I believe it is always important to take this seriously and do your research. I understand that everyone is tired of the political ads and just want to ignore this, but this is your life we are talking about. If you want change, if you believe something is going right or wrong, or if you simply want to make a difference, take your time and realize what you really want for your life. I really encourage all of you to educate yourselves as much as possible and get to the polls and vote!