Tuesday, November 08, 2005

Election Day

Voters across the country went to the polls today on a wide variety of issues. In Washington State and Spokane County specifically, we voted on issues such as caps on medical malpractice suits and increased spending on mental health services. We avoided many of the "hot-button" issues currently debated in other states, but I felt no less urgent in my commitment to exercise my franchise.

I voted for the first time after my 18th birthday in the 1996 presidential contest between Bill Clinton and Bob Dole (I was old enough to vote during the 1992 election, but I was serving a mission in Guatemala and did not pursue an absentee ballot). My first voting experience was somewhat spiritual for me. I truly felt myself participating in the democratic process, and at the end of the day, my vote mattered.

After I voted tonight, election officials gave me a little sticker saying, "I Voted." I wore that little sticker like a badge of honor on the lapel of my jacket. When I went to class tonight, people noticed the sticker right away and applauded.

Whatever your convictions, get out and VOTE.

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