The right to vote is a privilege that is taken for granted by many Americans.

Women were fighting for the right to vote in the 1840s but were not allowed to until 1920. Some states banned Native Americans from voting until 1957. The Voting Rights Act, which protected the right of African-Americans to vote, was not passed until 1965.

Thousands of people died in order to obtain the right to vote. Americans need to exercise that right and have a say in the government.

Andrew Young, a civil rights activist from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, explains that “voting is not just a right, it’s an obligation.” According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 61.8 percent of eligible voters voted in the 2012 election.

In comparison, the voting turnout for 2014 was only 41.9 percent. Unfortunately, people do not realize that their vote matters, and that there are still important topics to vote on in nonpresidential elections.

The purpose of voting is to have a say in the government. If you do not like your representatives in the House of Representatives, they are up for re-election every other year. Your vote helps to influence who represents you, and that is not something to waste.

A lot of times, people complain of taxes or that gas prices are too high. True, some increases are necessary, due to the increase of income or the increase in other prices. However, there could be a change, had you voted for someone who wanted to address those exact things.

People who don’t use their vote complain about things they could have changed. Would you rather take 20 minutes out of your day to vote, or spend the rest of that term wishing you had voted? You might have had lower taxes or better health care. You will not know until you use your vote.

Alanna Luce

Portland

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