Let’s be clear. The local elections coming up on Tuesday, November 7, will be the first national-level elections to take place since Donald Trump was elected president. Think.about.that. If you are a Democrat - and/or are otherwise frightened for the future of our nation given the current situation, I have news for you: Voting in the local elections on November 7 is the most significant action that you can take at this point to bring about positive change.
And don’t be naive - local politics strongly affect national level politics. This is the key to the strategy employed by the Tea Party, when they made sure that Republican control came to exist at local and county levels all around the country almost immediately after Barack Obama became president. History tells us that the Donald Trump presidency is a product of this strategy.
Democrats and Progressive Voters MUST Come to the Polls on Tuesday, 11/7/2017
Democrats are known for being unreliable when it comes to voting. I have to say that there has been an off-year election here and there when I have stayed home. But not any more. After seeing how much elections can shape the future of our nation - the future of the world that we have to offer to our children, alumni, and protegees - I say this: I fully plan to exercise my right to vote at each and every opportunity moving forward.
Exercising our right to vote is an extraordinary privilege - and not voting is a slap in the face of the greatest nation in the history of the world.
The Betrayal of Barack Obama
I had an interesting conversation with a woman when I was canvassing the other day. She knew her history and her politics quite well. And she said to me this: She neglected to vote in the off-year elections of 2009 - and to this day, she realizes that she ultimately betrayed Barack Obama by neglecting to vote in that off-year election. How so? By not voting in the local elections that followed Obama’s victory in 2008, she, like so many of us, allowed right-wingers to take over local governments across the nation. The history books tell us that this outcome was just Step 1.
Notice that our nation is controlled by Republicans from the top down? One reason for this fact is this: Democrats have failed to show up at the polls for local elections - not realizing the large-scale consequences of such neglect. Once the Republicans controlled things at the local and county levels, they worked up the ladder - gaining power in state and national offices. They took over both houses of Congress. And, of course, if that’s not enough, we now have Donald J. Trump as our president.
If you think that local elections don’t matter, I say that you might want to think again.
Case in point: In my town of Plattekill in 2015, only 30% of the Democrats came out to vote. A much higher proportion of Republicans in this town came out to vote. And guess what? Republicans maintained a stronghold on our town and county government.
The Future is in Our Hands
If you are worried about the future of our nation, as I am, you need to realize that much is still in your control. The primary way to make change in a democracy like ours is to vote. Given the state of our nation, I am a big believer in voting at each and every opportunity. At this point in our history, there simply is too much at stake.
Want to make a difference? Want to bring about positive change? Wondering what you can do to help get this nation back on track?
See you at the polls on Tuesday!
Genuinely,
Glenn Geher - Candidate for Ulster County Legislator - Plattekill, District 12. New York State. Democrat.
#LetFreedomRing
