Guest opinion: It’s your responsibility to vote in the most important election since 1932

If you believe in true representative government, the rule of law, and protection of individual rights, you will agree with us that the upcoming election is our last best chance of protecting and preserving our democracy. Facing the daunting challenges of renewing public health, mitigating climate change, rebuilding an equitable economy, and ensuring justice for all will require intelligent, practical, and compassionate leaders at all levels of government. As citizens of the United States, it is both our privilege and our responsibility to elect such leaders on Nov. 3.

Here in California, every registered voter should soon receive a ballot by mail. At voterstatus.sos.ca.gov, you can check to see if your registration is up to date. This is particularly important if you are a student, have changed your address, have changed your name, or have not voted recently. In 30 seconds you can verify your registration status. If you are not registered, and are a citizen of the United States and 18 years old before Nov. 3, you can register to vote at registertovote.ca.gov. An excellent recent posting on the Mountain View Voice answers most questions about registering and voting in California.

Beside voting, there are many things we can do to ensure that this election will put the nation on the road to recovery without risking our own health. We can send letters, emails and postcards to the people we know, encouraging them to participate in this most important election. At postcardstovoters.org/ we can join an effort to encourage others to verify their registration and vote on Nov. 3. And of course, we can donate money to the candidates that will represent our values at all levels of government. Remember that senators and representatives from all states make decisions that affect all U.S. citizens and the world at large.

“The common good” is a term that we don’t hear much anymore, but we have a unique opportunity to reject the politics of division by electing candidates up and down the ballot that will unite us to solve the problems we’re facing. On issues such as the pandemic and climate change, we truly are all in it together, so how could we opt for less than the common good? If your favorite candidate did not make the cut and you are not excited by either of the final candidates, you still can’t afford to sit this one out and let others decide. Somewhat ironically, we find that Thomas Jefferson said it very well, “We do not have government by the majority, we have government by the majority who participate.”

Ronald and Dorothy Schafer live on West Dana Street in Mountain View.

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