[quote]By Prashant Shankar
Online Writer
Graphic by Ana Biccoli[/quote]
One month ago, I conducted a poll for Metea’s choice for favorite presidential candidate. Despite getting 258 responses, I came across many, many students who weren’t interested in taking the poll. I received responses like “I hate them all,” “I don’t know any of the candidates,” and even “What’s the point of voting?”. I also had many people who were interested in voting, but didn’t know when the primary was, or even what it was. According to an informal poll of seniors, 40 percent didn’t know where they had to go to vote, and a whopping 69 percent didn’t even know the date of the primary.
For those who don’t know, the presidential primaries will come to Illinois next Tuesday from 6 AM to 7 PM, and will allow voters to choose either their favorite Republican or Democratic candidate. But even though voting takes around ten minutes at worst for registered voters, so many people refuse to vote for “the better of two evils.”
Every election cycle, so many voters feel they hate both/all the candidates, and end up not voting. I’ve never understood that logic. As Hank Green once put it, if you don’t vote, you’re giving half a vote to the side you like more, and half a vote to the side you hate more.
[polldaddy poll=9339161]
Lots of students don’t feel like voting because they think their vote doesn’t matter. That isn’t the case in the primaries, as delegates are provided proportionally, so winning states by a wide margin gets a candidate more delegates than if they won by a small margin. For example, if a candidate gets 40 percent of the primary vote, they’ll get about 40 percent of the delegates, which are needed down the road for victory. Votes especially matter in primaries because so few registered voters actually vote in the primaries, making your vote much more influential than in the general election, where a state is winner-take-all.
When you do vote, you don’t have to worry about party affiliation like other states. Instead, in Illinois, you request a Democratic or Republican ballot at the booth to write on, so don’t worry about political identification, since you can choose there.
You might think you can’t vote because you’re not 18, but that’s not necessarily the case. If you’ll be 18 by Nov. 8, 2016, you can register and vote in this upcoming primary.
If you didn’t register to vote by the Feb. 16 deadline, you can still register at your primary location. Just bring two forms of ID, one containing your current address. For students, a driver’s license plus student ID will do the trick.
No matter who’s your favorite candidate, do your duty as an American and vote. While many have their eyes on the general election, the primary is what chooses who gets to run for the general election, so it holds just as much importance.
Links are provided below the article so you can find your voter location, voter status, and more.
Find your voting place if you aren’t registered yet: http://www.vote411.org/enter-your-address
Check your registration status+polling place: https://www.elections.il.gov/votinginformation/RegistrationLookup.aspx
Recommended forms of ID when registering: http://www.chicagoelections.com/en/when-you-need-id-to-vote.html
Extra information: https://www.dupageco.org/Election/37876/
Correction: The Republican primary isn’t completely proportional. 15 of the 67 delegates are guaranteed to the winner, but the rest are proportional. The Stampede regrets this error.
*Disclaimer: This article is categorized as Opinions. The views of this article are that of the writer and do not represent the Stampede staff as a whole and should not be interpreted as a staff editorial.
Anoymous • Mar 10, 2016 at 8:16 am
This year’s election does not have any good candidates. Trump wants to become president just because for more money and attention.
non-voter • Mar 9, 2016 at 1:21 pm
kids our age shouldn’t vote, and that’s that
Anonymous • Mar 9, 2016 at 2:49 pm
This is our future. We get to shape it.
Start Caring • Mar 10, 2016 at 7:44 am
Well, “kids our age” won’t always be younger than 18, (in fact, some here already are) so I think it’s about time you start caring if we have a dictator for a leader or not. Your phone can’t save you from making decisions forever, non-voter. I’ll say, I’m not even 16, but I’m hoping Trump DOESN’T win. He’s become a literal joke on the internet and he can’t keep his mouth shut. His giant mouth could start World War 3 if he becomes president. So when you’re old enough to vote, don’t throw your choices away because your vote could change whether we have an excellent president like Lincoln, or the Lego Movie happens in real life where a business man (hint hint) gets into power and almost destroys the world.
Matt Fitzgerald • Mar 10, 2016 at 12:49 pm
If we cant vote, then how are we supposed to have influence on the direction the country goes?
Arjun Nair • Mar 11, 2016 at 4:29 am
If we’re old enough to serve, we’re old enough to vote.
I Want to Vote So Badly Guys • Mar 9, 2016 at 10:29 am
I’m really mad that some people aren’t voting. I’m a sophomore, so the first election i’ll be able to vote in is 2020, and you better believe i’m gonna be at the booths bright and early. Whether you vote for Trump, Cruz, Sanders, Clinton, whatever! It’s important to voice your opinion because that is the only way to change our country for the better.
Anonymous • Mar 9, 2016 at 3:00 pm
I can’t vote either. But that doesn’t mean you can’t affect this election. You can phonebank for your candidate of choice, or just try and convince as many people who can vote as possible.
Kasich 2016 • Mar 9, 2016 at 7:42 am
“That isn’t the case in the primaries, as delegates are provided proportionally, so winning states by a wide margin gets a candidate more delegates than if they won by a small margin.” This doesn’t apply to Illinois, however, due to Illinois being a winner take-all state, this is misinformation for the Illinois primary voter.