Election 2024 (#2)

I’ve been listening to the Democratic National Convention. I have heard former President Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, and many others give stirring addresses. Oprah said that morality and honesty are more important than party membership. And I’m stirred. I’m convinced. We Americans need to elect Kamala Harris and Coach Tim Walz this November.

But,… I live in Hawai‘i, a state which is so Democratic, my vote won’t make any difference. The only way that Hawai‘i’s electoral votes will go to Trump is if somehow the conspiracy theories of election fraud will have actually occurred. The candidates for the senate and congress from Hawaii will not need my vote to win, so that means my vote isn’t important.

Or would my non-voting be so unimportant? How would I talk to my niece and grand nieces and nephew about the reasons to vote? They don’t live in Hawai‘i, although they may live where one party dominates the local scene. If I don’t vote in every election in which I’m eligible, why should they heed my words that they should vote? And if they don’t vote, how can they become responsible citizens?

So I will vote in November. Unless all of us throughout the nation vote, not merely for president and vice president, but for down-the-ballot candidates, the hopes envisioned by candidates Kamala Harris and Tim Walz will die in congress. So I will vote in November and encourage everyone I know to vote for congressmen and senators, for city council members, for school board officers, for any other office which is up for election. What matters is that these offices get filled by people who champion public schools, not censorship banning books; by people who care for others, not merely for their donors; by people who live honorably and honestly, not men and women who use their office to enhance their wealth.