Voting
Rights and Responsibilities
One of the most important aspects of our democratic republic is our right to vote. By voting, we record our preference directly on a ballot question or referendum, and we select individuals to represent us in government. Voting sends a message to those who serve us as elected officials what we, the people, want and expect them to do. It is certainly our right as citizens of the United States, but more than that, voting is our responsibility.
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When citizens do not show up to vote, two things happen:
1. the expectations of only a small portion of the American people are used to establish government practice and decision making, and
2. elected officials know that the people are not paying attention, so dishonest and unethical behavior can flourish unchecked in our government.
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Primaries and General Elections
Primary elections are used to narrow the field to one candidate in each political party. If you want to have good choices to vote for in the general election, then it is very important to become familiar with the candidates in the primaries, so you can make sure the best candidates move forward to the general election.
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The general election is where the voters chose the person they want to represent them in government.
Special elections can be held at unusual times in order to fill an unexpected vacancy or to decide on an important question. Local elections are often held when there are no state or federal candidates running for office. Local elections are extremely important since those officials make the decisions that effect your immediate community.
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Political Parties
There are currently two major political parties in the United States: Democratic and Republican. There are several smaller political parties which are sometimes grouped under the heading, Independent, but Independents are technically individuals who do not identify with or support any specific political party.
Click here for a list of political parties in the U.S.
Click here for an article on the history of political parties in the U.S.
Click here to go to Democrats.org
Click here to go to the Republican National Committee
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What's on my ballot?
Voting in the United States is regulated by state and managed within each state by voting districts. Your ballot will have issues specific to your particular voting district as well as any federal or state issues or offices that apply to you.
For instance, in a presidential election year every ballot in the United States will include voting choices for President, but you will only vote for U.S. Senator when one of your state's U.S. Senators is up for election. Your U.S. Representative is up for election every even numbered year, but there may be different US Representatives for different districts in your state.
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There will likely be a variety of state and local offices and possibly some referendums on your ballot.
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The League of Women Voters runs a website, called Vote 411, that will tell you what districts you are in, if you are registered to vote, and what is on your local ballot. You can also register to vote from that website if your state has online voter registration.
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Click here to go to Vote411.org
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You can also contact your local newspaper or your local library and ask if they have a copy of the ballot for the upcoming election. Specific ballot information may not be available until shortly before the election, but the various political parties will be happy to tell you about their candidates in any election.
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