This past Thursday, I voted for the first time. I had a very busy week full of midterms and assignments, but made sure to find time to head to the polling place. The polling place opened at 7am on Thursday, and I had class at 8am. I’ve been hearing that a lot of the polling places have had super long lines with up to 3 hours of waiting time, so I planned on getting there early so I could make it to my class on time after. That didn’t work out, I got to the polling place about 10 minutes after it opened and the line was already wrapped around the building. The wait was not anything close to the 3 hours that a lot of people were waiting for in nearby towns that I heard of, it was more just like 45 minutes. It was an interesting experience, from the pouring rain and the man that did not know anything about personal space (he stood literally an inch behind my friend and I, and just kept moving closer whenever we tried to move away) telling us that he “didn’t want his hard work to benefit others” for about 10 minutes then proceeding to blast rock music out of his phone and dancing. The pouring rain and this man were bothersome for sure, but what was even more bothersome was seeing people drive into the parking lot or walk by the line and shake their heads and then just walk or drive away. I understand that people are busy, but you cannot let the long lines turn you away. Waiting in line for a few minutes or a few hours to vote for the future of you and the country should be a top priority for everyone. It’s easy to think that your one, single vote won’t matter or affect anything, but it does. It affects the way you will feel if the election does or doesn’t turn out as you expected. Voting is one of the most important things you can do to make your voice matter and to give your support. So, don’t let a long line or a rain storm and an annoying man behind you stop you from completing your duty to vote. It saddened me to see people walking away or driving away after seeing the long line. I pray that they went back another time. It is so important to just find the time to wait and to vote, it’s more important now than ever. This Tuesday, November 3rd, is the last day to vote. So, if you haven’t already, make sure you find the time.
