By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | If I have heard this once, I have heard it a dozen times this political year. It continues, here two months before the presidential election.
“I just don’t know what I’m going to do in the presidential election.”
It sometimes comes from Republicans. At other times, it comes from people who would normally vote Democratic.
Neither side has widely-popular candidates. Though there remain die-hards on both sides, a lot of people who are more centrists are just having a hard time.
It may affect early voting, which doesn’t seem to be as popular as it once was. Early voting starts October 17 in Georgia, though you can apply for an Absentee ballot now.
And it may affect the vote totals of the major candidates. “I may vote Libertarian,” I’ve heard people on both sides say.
These people are your regulars who turn out every election. They really weigh their choices, many thinking themselves more swing voters, but who will often vote one way in this election, perhaps another way in the next election. Many are truly independent voters, but many more are party regulars upset about their national choice.
What to do?
No one has a good answer.
Perhaps the best suggestion is for these folk who we will award the name “Concerned Voters” will have to play close attention—more than ever before— to what happens in the next two months. There will be a lot of hype and hyperbole from both sides of the spectrum. The Concerned Voters will have to make sure that they are not taken in by such pronouncements. This is a situation where they will have to work hard to really separate the wheat from the chaff. It will not be an easy task.
And in the end, they will have to make at least two choices. Whether to throw up their hands, and just stay away from voting, or go to the polls with a clothespin attached to their nose, and chose one presidential candidate or the other.
Yet, let us urge these Concerned Voters to at least make it to the polls, for at least one reason. There are other people on the ballot who have earned their vote. These may be incumbents who deserve to be returned to their position, or first-time candidates who have shown in the run-up to the vote that they could be good office-holders, at least as good if not better than the incumbents.
Staying away from the polls just because the Concerned Voter is not happy with the presidential candidates is a disservice to our nation, state and county. We feel like voting is an obligation of our citizenship, so therefore urge all to go to the polls.
If you just cannot vote in the presidential race, we understand. But think of the many other candidates for other offices who have been planning their campaign, knocking on doors, and trying to earn your vote. Remember them on election day, and vote.
CURRENTLY GwinnettForum is interviewing candidates who have opposition in the General Election for state and local offices. After these interviews are complete, GwinnettForum will once again publish un-edited comments from candidates who visit us and reply to the same six questions, so that our readers will be able to compare how they answer these questions. Look for the beginning of this in mid-October. On the same day, GwinnettForum, for the fourth consecutive election, will also announce its endorsements in all contested races.
YOU’VE HEARD the student’s excuse, “The dog ate my homework.” The modern excuse has changed to “The computer ate my homework.”
That’s what happened to one “recommendation” that a reader sent. We were ready to publish it, but we can no longer find it. So if you sent a recent recommendation, please send again. To complicate matters, we can’t remember who it was from, so we are really in a jam. We want more recommendations (for books, movies, restaurants, you name it) from any of our readers. Please send ‘em in! We’ll try not to lose ‘em.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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