On Tuesday, November 6, 2012, citizens will be heading out to cast their votes! To ensure that your voice is heard and your vote is counted, there are couple of steps that you can. It does not matter if you’re a Democrat, a Republican or an Independent- just make sure you get to the polls and vote for the candidate that you feel is best qualified to lead our country. See below for some general background information about getting your voice heard…remember every vote counts!
So for starters- the two main political parties are democrat and republican. Democrats are referred to as liberals or republicans as conservatives. From an economic standpoint:
Republicans generally:
-Do not agree with re-distribution of wealth
-Are less likely to favor social welfare programs
-Argue that taxes should be the same percentage for all income brackets
-Advocate for less government spending
Democrats are generally in favor of:
-Spending for social programs and providing aid to the poor
-Redistribution of wealth by asking those who are wealthy to pay more taxes or (their fair share)
-If the economy is failing- then government needs to step in and help to correct the market
It is highly important for you voters to familiarize yourself with both parties and their candidates on where they stand on issues such as: economic growth, gay marriage, the wars (not too much said in the media about this, but the troops are still overseas), foriegn policies, healthcare, etc.
Remember every vote counts- so just how are votes counted? It all comes down to states (remember hearing a swing state, or a democrat state?). The Electoral College consists of 538 electors and the candidate needs to earn 270 to be elected President. In order for the candiate to win the state (garning all the electoral votes), they must win the popular vote. Each state is assigned a number of electoral votes based on the amount of members in its Congressional delegation.
Are you registered? If not, please visit your state’s election board website to find out more information regarding voting guidelines. Reminder: You must register to vote 30 days PRIOR to ELECTION DAY.
On Election Day- please do the following:
-Make sure you have a valid government issued photo ID
-Head to the poll station assigned to your county (you can find this information on your city’s Board of Elections webpage)- make sure to get to there before the polls close…if you are online when they close, you must be allowed to vote!
-Cast your vote- if you are not on the list (you can cast a provisional ballot).
Now that you have the general basics- VOTE! It’s important and it makes a differnce.
