I'm a Democrat. But I want as many people as possible to vote in every election -- Democrats, Republicans, unaffiliated. Everybody who is registered.
So, if you haven't returned your ballot, do it as soon as possible. Remember that now Oregon allows mailed ballots to be counted even if they arrive after election day (November 8), so long as they're postmarked on or before election day. And the postage has been paid.
And you can drop off your ballot at an official drop box until 8 pm on election day if you don't mail your ballot. Click here to locate a drop box near you.
So far only 28% of registered voters in Marion County have cast their ballot. Hopefully the final percentage will be much higher. This is a hugely important midterm election. Here in Oregon, polling shows some very close races.
Check out FiveThirtyEight for their current odds of candidates winning or losing. Oregon's Governor race between Tina Kotek and Christine Drazan is basically a tossup. So your vote could decide who leads our state for the next four years.
To my mind the most important reason to vote, aside from this being a civic duty, is that it immunizes you against feeling like you didn't do what you could to make sure your favored candidates and ballot measures win.
If you don't vote, you've got no right to complain about the outcome of the election. Well, you can complain, but your standing to do so is shaky. I'm sure there will be a lot for me to complain about after the election is over.
However, at least I will have voted.
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