Two months ago when I was home and still an
‘Ike Program intern at KYA,
Ross the Boss took the
Studio gang on a field trip. The main purpose of this field trip was to celebrate the close of a successful internship session (and boy did we have a fun time celebrating at Dave & Busters), but Ross made sure that we also stopped at
Honolulu Hale to cast early votes for the
Primaries. While I had previously registered and planned to vote that Saturday, Ross’s insistence that the Studio do so, on work time no less, further validated what my teachers, parents, and mentors had been telling me for the past 10 years or so: voting is important.
This is an exciting time to be a young adult in
Hawai‘i and the
United States as a whole. Two years ago, my peers and I watched the elections from the sidelines. Sure, we had some knowledge of current events and issues, and we might’ve been familiar with the
candidates running for various offices, but for many of us, those issues and candidates were the distant concerns of a detached public. Now that we have the opportunity to actively participate in the decision-making process, the sentiment’s changed. Last week Wednesday, it was cool to see my
Facebook newsfeed cluttered with commentary regarding the
Presidential Debate instead of filled with rants about the unfairness of the high school dress code. We’ve grown up quite a bit.
However, voting itself is still seen by some as a large chore of lesser priority--a waste of time, if you will. This is especially the case for college students who are far away from their home polling places. That’s where I come in saying, “not only is voting important, it’s easy!”
Away from home on
Election Day, or just don’t wanna wait in line? Apply for an absentee voter ballot! It’s simple: download the
application (I've linked it), print it out, fill it in (which takes fewer than five minutes), and mail it to your home county’s office listed on the first page. Unfortunately, if you haven’t registered to vote in Hawai‘i, you’re out of luck for this election. But register anyway! The
application is available online and as easy to fill out as the absentee application. Any other questions? Consult the Hawai‘i Office of Elections
website.
Cliché as it might sound, voting is the opportunity our government gives us to make our voices heard. This Election, use that opportunity.
Vote!
