ELECTION: Why you should vote

Do you care who runs your state and county, and represents you at the federal level? If so, we all need to vote in the primary election Tuesday, May 20. It’s no secret that Idaho is one of the reddest states, if not the reddest, so in all probability many if not most of the federal, statewide and county candidates that are elected in November’s general election will be Republicans who win in Tuesday’s primary. Sorry to my Democratic friends, but the recent trends show this not to be an unreasonable expectation.

This brings us back to the importance of the Republican primary. If you normally vote in the general election, you really need to consider this the same and vote on Tuesday. Recently the turnout for non-presidential general elections in Idaho is more than 50 percent, but the turnout in primary elections hovers around the 21-22 percent range. We need to consider this our general election and get out and vote. If we fail to get the voter participation up, we have only ourselves to blame if we don’t like the end results.

Since the state Republican Party has chosen to have a closed primary election, only registered Republicans can vote the Republican ballot in the primary. If you are an undeclared registered voter and would like to vote Republican, you can register as a Republican on the day of the election at your normal polling place. If you are not registered to vote you can still do so at your polling place on the day of the election or prior to that at the Elections Office. To register, make sure you bring ID and proof of residency, such as a utility bill, and you can still vote. Check with the Elections Office for exact requirements.

Become an informed voter. Please find out where the candidates stand on the various issues and vote accordingly. Check out the party platforms, the voter profiles in the paper, information from candidate forums and talk to trusted, informed friends.

HANK MARTIN

Hayden