I know you haven’t heard from me in a while but that’s a story for another day. Recently I overheard a group of women talking about our upcoming midterm elections here in the US. I was completely shocked at what I was hearing and nearly spilled my margarita all over my new Tommy Bahama shirt! These were women. Old enough to know better.
These are some of the things I overheard (eavesdropped).
- I think voting in the midterms is a waste of time.
- I just vote for whoever my husband says to vote for.
- I vote, I just watch commercials and decide from that.
- I listen to you guys and vote who you say is a good choice! (All nod in agreement like Stepford Wives).
- Has anyone voted early yet? If I don’t get around to voting early, I’m not going to vote. Voting day is just too much.
The conversation went on and I was like, ‘sweet baby Jesus’. Their grandma’s and great-grandma’s marched and fought for voting rights. They would all roll over in their graves if they heard this. Do any of these women have any critical thinking skills? Can they not think/research on their own? Is this the majority of how people vote in the midterms? Have the aliens landed, and I missed that on the news?
So, I’m going to give out some free advice. It’s how I usually research. But I’ll just give you the quick version since early voting is almost over and the big VOTE Day is the 8th of November. You can impress your friends and family with how smart you are if you have friends like the ladies I mention above. So, here goes.
Google ‘My Voter Information’ and you will find your state/county voter info., polling places and you can print a sample ballot. Print the ballot because it lists all the folks in your district you can vote for. Once you print that off, it’s time to do some research.
Remember, you don’t have to vote straight Republican or Democrat. You need to vote for who you feel is best qualified to do the job, aligns with most of your beliefs, and is the least of all the evils. (I say the last part because I feel most politicians get greedy and drunk with power and begin to work the system to stay in power and not so much take care of their people. It’s kind of sad but it is what is. You won’t find any politician that has zero skeletons in their many closets. (Even at Halloween).
Now, go to https://ballotpedia.org/
This is where you can type in anyone running and find out factual info. Including all their socials and websites. If they are not listed here, consider it a tiny red flag. You will have to dig deeper into those not listed here. If they are listed, you can find their websites and socials. Search those for the following:
- What each candidate stands for.
- The issues they stand for.
- Who is endorsing them.
- Their personal life and story.
- Sometimes you will see questions they have answered on the site too.
- Check out all their socials.
Do this with each candidate. Write down each one that you like what you are reading about. Do further research just to be sure before you vote. Take your list of winners to the polls so you don’t forget who to vote for.
Now about RED FLAGS. If a candidate has no Ballotpedia profile, no picture or no social media/website, that’s a no vote for me. If they don’t have time to have those out there for people to see and learn from, they don’t have time to work for you.
If you see a website or socials where they only have a place for you to donate money to their campaign, or very little information about themselves and what they stand for, no vote. I don’t even vote for those with no picture.
Finally, plan to spend a little time at the polls. You may see a few of the folks you are voting for there. Talk to them and their rivals too. Take questions with you to ask. This is your last time to actually get a feel for your candidate in person before you vote.
If you think midterms are pointless, read this: https://www.rockthevote.org/explainers/what-are-midterms/
You can also (through your state/county websites) find out about alternate voting methods like mail in ballots etc.
Lastly, get that ‘I Voted’ sticker and grab your favorite beverage. You’ve earned it! Feel free to share this with anyone who needs a refresher course in learning to research the vote!