It’s time to get out there and vote

Next Tuesday is the first Tuesday in November, and in South Dakota, that means it’s time for the General Election. We said it in the lead up to the Primary Election, and we will say it again—be sure to get out there and vote.
It’s a very easy time to be disenfranchised with the government. Especially at the national level. But locally and on the state level, things are a little more sane and a little less contentious, and choosing our local elected officials is vitally important, because they are the decision makers who have the most effect on our day-to-day lives. Political junkies love to spend hours arguing about national politics, but the decisions made in the town halls across this county affect the residents of the county much more personally than the decisions made by federal politicians.
When it comes to local races, those were, for the most part, settled during the Primary Election. Not completely, however. We do have the District 30 race for the House of Representatives, which is being contested by three candidates. You can read who is in that race, as well as who is contesting the state races, on the front page of this issue of the Chronicle.
We do not endorse candidates here at the Chronicle. For many years, newspapers have offered endorsements of candidates, mostly at the national level. We, of course, want to be perfectly unbiased when it comes to covering elections and candidates, so therefore we do not tell you who we think for whom you should cast your ballot. After all, that’s a personal decision, and in this day and age, most people have a pretty good idea who they are going to vote for and don’t need someone from the newspaper telling them which way to go. That remains especially true in our smaller towns, where most of the people on our staff really don’t even know much about the candidates.
There are some fascinating races on the national level that both sides of the aisle are pouring millions and millions into to try to sway the vote. That fact alone should tell you there is something wrong with the way things are done at the national level. There is entirely too much money in politics, particularly at the national level. We aren’t sure how you solve that, but we would be all ears if someone wanted to explain it.
We should never take our civic duty of voting lightly. Never forget, there are countries around the world where citizens don’t get to vote, or their votes don’t really count. We are fortunate to live in a place where that is not the case. Our votes matter, particularly at the local level, where races frequently come down to one or two votes. There have been a few elections over the past few years locally where that has been the case.
Will there be a “blue wave” due to disatisfaction with the way things are going? Will the GOP hang on to the House and Senate in Washington, D.C.? We will know soon enough.
Honor your community and state by going out and helping decide who is going to lead it over the course of the next two, three or four years.
Best of luck to all the candidates, whether in a local election or statewide.