| |
Vital Views
The Severna Park Voice, October 2004
Return to the Archive
One Vote Does Make A Difference
by County Councilwoman Cathleen M. Vitale
For some, fall means closing down the pool, gathering leaves from your
lawn, or perhaps eagerly looking forward to that one night when you can
set back the clock and gain that lost additional hour of sleep. For
others, it means football games, bonfires and long sleeve sweaters. For
those in political life, it means bullroasts, fundraisers and standing
on street corners hoping to gain a few extra votes before that faithful
day in November. Unfortunately, all too frequently, it means election
day has passed and "what if" starts to happen. "What if I had voted?"
"What if the other person won the election?" "Would my vote have
mattered?" "Would it have made a difference?"
Recent history (yes, the election of 2000 is history) taught us that one
vote does make a difference. Distant history teaches us even more. A bit
of trivia for those that are skeptical: Did you know that it was two
votes that brought Texas into the Union in 1845? One vote saved
President Andrew Johnson from removal from office in 1868? Or that in
1876, with the presidential election thrown into the House of
Representatives, Rutherford B. Hayes won by a single vote, cast by an
Indiana Congressman who himself had been elected by a one-vote margin.
One vote made Tennessee the 36th state to ratify the 19th Amendment to
the U.S. Constitution, which gave women the right to vote in 1920. More
recently, a four vote difference meant a defeat for then Delegate Vicky
Shade of Pasadena, and a victory for Mary Rosso. While one vote might
not seem so important, image those "one votes" added to all the other
"one votes". Who is to say how many national, state and even local laws
would never have come to pass, but for one vote here and there.
We teach our children to stand up for what they believe in, to make
their voices be heard. How often have we seen bumper stickers and
headlines with sayings such as "don't blame me, I voted for ...". The
point being, you voted. On November 2, 2004, we have a chance to put our
voice where the vote is, and I strongly encourage each one of you to do
so. Think of it. As American citizens, all too often we take for
granted, the liberties that our Constitution affords us. Recently, a
group of educators from Iraq came to the United States. The purpose was
an opportunity to learn how one teaches democracy to a country whose
citizens not only had no vote, but they had no voice. I was amazed to
hear the Minister of Education, while addressing the County Council,
tell my colleagues and I how excited students were to learn of the power
of the vote, or how the citizens looked forward to their first election.
I cannot begin to imagine what that feels like.
As one whose name has been on the ballot since 1994, running for one
position or another, I can assure you, candidates take voting seriously.
Why else would you see us standing in the rain during the weeks leading
up to an election, door knocking on an otherwise beautiful Saturday
afternoon or debating the opposition one debate at a time, night after
night after night? Candidates believe they can make a difference... and
many of them can and do. However, even the best candidate will not get
their chance, if no one goes to the polls. When someone tells me they
are not planning to vote, I have to ask why. The answers are many, the
justifications, few. Whether it is for Circuit Court Judge, the County
Council, a delegate to a national Convention or the President of the
United States, if you think one vote doesn't matter, think again. VOTE
ON NOVEMBER 2nd.
|
|
|
