It’s that time of the year again. The airwaves are flooded with a surge of campaign ads. The news are featuring politicians vying for votes non-stop. It’s election season.
Today the first ballots have been mailed out in Colorado. Election Day, Nov. 4, is three weeks away, but the midterms (no, not those tests your professor will throw at you over the next few weeks) begin today. And make no mistake, these elections are about you.
So take one miniature step out of your comfort zone and vote.
We are not going to tell you who to vote for. CUIndependent.com doesn’t endorse candidates. But it does endorse democracy.
Don’t make excuses. Don’t tell yourself politics is this far-away thing in Washington. Don’t let anyone tell you your votes won’t change anything. They do.
We are not going to get into the fact that in many countries around the globe, people are willing to sacrifice their lives for the right to vote.
You just need to look at what’s at stake here in Colorado, what’s at stake for you.
Our state features a Senate race that could easily determine whether or not both chambers of Congress will become Republican or remain divided between both parties. The race between Democratic Senator Mark Udall and Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, has been one about women’s rights, health care and college affordability.
The governors’ race between incumbent Democrat John Hickenlooper and Republican challenger Bob Beauprez has been a continuous debate about jobs, the economy, the death penalty and gun control. Heck, both of them even tossed the idea around whether or not to outlaw recreational marijuana again.
And then you have proposed amendments such as Amendment 67, which could ultimately lead the way to outlawing abortion and common forms of birth control.
Even locally, here in Boulder, your voice matters. Ask yourself: Do none of the issues above apply to your life? Really, none?
If you haven’t registered to vote yet, you can do so until Election Day (click here). And for all of you who are going to find those ballots in your mailboxes over the course of the next few days and weeks, fill them out and return them (there are drop-off places on campus).
Go vote. It is your future.
Contact CU Independent Managing Editor Lars Gesing at lars.gesing@colorado.edu.
