Opinion | Despite post office, pandemic and president, I will vote
Mady Dever, Opinions Editor
This November, I had planned to stand in line at my neighbor’s usual house-turned-polling-place, anticipating the moment I can drop in my ballot and proudly wear an “I Voted” sticker on my walk home. Instead, because of the COVID-19 outbreak, I will drop my mail-in ballot at one of over 300 voting drop boxes in Los Angeles County and post an “I Voted” selfie on Instagram.
Many college students are first-timers this year who can finally exercise their right to vote. As young people aged 18 to 29, we held about a 46% voter turnout rate in 2016. No one was surprised to see we came in dead last. That’s why it’s incredibly crucial we work to make this number go up. Young people are often the driving force for radical change that deserves a proper backing, so if we bring that energy to the polls, imagine where that could lead us.
This year is different. The stakes are higher and our current president is threatening our livelihoods and our democracy. It’s going to be more difficult to get to your local polling place because we’re in the middle of a pandemic, and it’s become more confusing to cast a vote because President Donald Trump is meddling with our postal service.
But all of these obstacles should not deter you from voting. We have had so many barriers and changes to our lives in 2020 and we’ve learned to navigate, despite it all. Ensuring that our vote is counted among cries to save the United States Postal Services is just one more barrier – a barrier I never thought our country would be maneuvering, but these are the strange circumstances that come with living in 2020.
This means young voters need to take those extra steps – registering to vote, helping your friends register, finding local drop boxes or mailing in your ballot early – to ensure your voice is heard. I’ve become good at procrastinating my homework, but you’d best be sure I’m going to turn in my vote on time.
Luckily, all registered voters in the state of California will automatically receive a vote-by-mail ballot for the Nov. 3 election. So check those mailboxes and send it out as early as 29 days before Election Day. You can mail it in, place it in a vote-by-mail drop box location or at any voting center in Los Angeles.
Let’s take a deep breath. Voting might not be a piece of cake, but it’ll be a most delicious meal. That is, if we get the flavor we chose on our ballots.