Well, here it is. Election Day, 2020. The day we decide who will be the leader of our country for the next four years (assuming there are no assassinations, death by natural causes, or impeachments). Finally, the campaign ads will no longer fill the airwaves. (That's the part I'm most interested in.)
Voter turnout is expected to be quite high this year. Already, people have sent in their ballots by mail, or voted early in-person (myself included in that second category; actually voting ON Election Day is a huge drag, as the lines are really, really long). Still more people will be showing up today to cast their votes.
To what end, though?
The electoral system in the U.S.A. is winner-take-all with several levels to clear. If enough votes in your district go to the other candidate (the one you didn't vote for), that district goes to that candidate. If enough districts in the county go to the other candidate, then the county goes to the other candidate. If enough counties in the state go to the other candidate, then the state goes to the other candidate. The states themselves are weighted by population; I read somewhere that if you can win 22 specific states (not totally sure on the number, but it was greater than 20, and less than 25), you've won the election.
Put simply, there is a very good chance that your vote won't actually accomplish anything.
I wonder what our ancestors, who fought and died so that we may choose our leader, would think of us now? We, who don't vote because we can't be bothered to. We, who don't vote because we don't like either candidate. We, who vote for Candidate A, if only to try to stop Candidate B from taking office.
I suspect they would be most disappointed in us.
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