VOTE!

 

March 5^th is the Presidential Primary in Minnesota. Joe and I registered to vote back in August when we got our Minnesota Driver’s Licenses. Early voting was available today at the Wright County Government Building in Buffalo. Joe and I decided to do this so we could check out how the voting system works in Minnesota. We were both a bit concerned that we would show up at the Rockford polling place on the fifth to find out we were not on the registered voters list. Voting is important to us.

Both of us have only every voted in California and for the past thirty years we have voted by mail. We like this as we can pour over the issues discuss them and then vote in the comfort of our own home – no standing in lines or election day. We are usually well informed before we do this; however, it is handy having the ballot and all the materials in front of us for a last-minute review.

The mail in ballot system is different in Minnesota. Here you must request a mail in ballot each year whereas in California we automatically got ballots in the mail after signing up one year. Minnesota also has different primaries. This coming week is the Presidential Primary (same as in California).

Today we could vote from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm. We arrived about 9:45 am and there was nobody else there. We completed a form to get our ballot. The form includes an oath that you are voting for the party that most closely represents your own political beliefs. For Joe and I this was an easy decision. We are and always have been Democrats. We were in and out within fifteen minutes. Twelve minutes of that time was spent waiting for the official to check our forms and bring us up in the system and then to get our ballot. The voter completes the ballot manually and then feeds the ballot into a vote counting machine. That was new for us. Joe told me he got his fed in properly on the first try! My submission went smoothly as well. I can see where elderly (okay, OLDER THAN US) might be uncomfortable with the electronic part of voting. 

In Minnesota there is one change this year in the sharing of voting information with the parties. It is labeled as a “small” change on the Minnesota election information website. In the past, both political parties got a register with all voter’s names and the candidate they cast their vote for. This year only the candidate you vote for gets your name. I like this. Especially since Trump vowed to “root out … the radical-left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.”  While I would never declare myself a radical-left-thug, I am not taking my chances since I am unclear on what he considers a radical-left-thug. In my mind anyone with the kind of mindset that someone owes them loyalty, over loyalty to the Constitution and our country, is not to be trusted.

This is about as radical as you will see me get in my blog. However, anyone who already knows me, knows I am a Democrat and liberal. I believe in the greater good and a sense of community. I have no problem paying taxes that support programs that help those in need. I also believe in paying people a living wage.

No matter your party affiliation. Please vote!