The first thing you need to know about Beatrix is that she is the sort of person who reads the fine print. Don’t ask her to sign her name to anything unless you’d like to wait while she reads every word and fully understands what it is she is signing.
She ordered her absentee ballot weeks ago. She knew we’d be picking it up from her in person (to deliver to the ballot box, in person — we’re not trusting the USPS this cycle) so she had plenty of time to spend on it. This is the first time she’s voting in a major election.
So, it should surprise no one that she’s an excellent voter. She took her responsibility as an engaged citizen seriously.
She took the time to research every candidate and ballot measure. She wrestled with the difficult fact that sometimes you don’t like either choice very much but it is incumbent upon you to choose the one that is less bad. She discovered that sometimes you don’t get a choice as there’s only one candidate running. That with many ballots measures not checking the box yes or no is registered as a yes or no so you better put something in a box.
In other words, she spent the time learning how to vote the way we all should vote. We should all be taking the time to learn who everyone is. We should look at their records and not just listen to what they (or their websites) say. We should learn about the issues and what we truly care about. We all should take the time to read the fine print too.
The best time to do this is all of the time. The second best time is weeks in advance like Beatrix. We shouldn’t be trying to learn about what’s on the ballot and what we plan to do five minutes before we walk out the door to the polling place. We should give it the attention it deserves.
We should read the fine print and know what we are signing.
Watching my daughter voting for the first time has inspired me to do better. I hope it inspires you as well. At the least, I hope it reminds you of the responsibility that voting entails and that it is your right to make sure you get to do so.