During the recent September 5th primary election, less than 14% of the registered Democrats and Republicans in Broward County took the time to vote to choose their respective party’s gubernatorial candidate for November’s general election. Even less voted to choose their U.S. Senate candidate or vote in other contested races.
Do political parties even matter anymore? Only 105,000 of your Broward County neighbors out of 765,535 registered Democrats and Republicans think they do. In other words, more than a half million of our neighbors who are registered with a political party felt their lives were too busy to vote by mail, vote during the two week early voting period, or show up on election day at which they would have seen dozens of voting booths going unused most of the day.
Why vote? Does it really matter? If you do not believe voting is important to choose your elected representatives in Washington, Tallahassee, and in your local community, then I suppose you really do not care how they vote to set and spend your taxes, regulate your lives, run your schools, maintain your roads, protect you, or prepare to assist you after natural disasters.
It is very simple. We live in a representative republic in which we elect politicians to represent us in the legislative branches of our government. They in turn propose and vote to approve our rules and laws. And it normally takes 50% of them + 1 to affirmatively pass those laws for the Governor or President to sign or veto.
Over time, politicians formed voting blocs and political parties to try and reach that majority. So working hard to support and elect members of your political party in order to have that voting majority is important as well as having a Governor or President of your same party to sign those laws. Today the Republican Party is the majority party in both Tallahassee and in Washington and also holds the Governorship and Presidency.
The Republicans are statistically assured to keep their legislative majority in Tallahassee in November although our area does have a contested State House race with incumbent Representative Susan Goldstein seeking her second term. If you want our area to continue to be part of that ruling party majority in Tallahassee – with access to its leadership and funding – I heartily recommend you vote for Representative Goldstein who has already done much for Davie, Southwest Ranches, and Weston.
And if you believe, as I do, that Governor Bush has done a great job of making Florida the envy of the country for its economic growth engine, its accountable schools, and its safe streets, I hope you will join me in voting for Charlie Crist to keep the Governorship in Republican hands to ensure swift passage of legislation to keep our state prosperous and effective.
Our area also has a say in the election of a U.S. Senator in November although recent polling is showing that incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson has a large lead over his opponent Katherine Harris. I still urge you to vote for the Senatorial candidate of your choice because we all learned six years ago that a few hundred votes can decide an election!
Regardless of whether you are a Democrat, Republican, or are not affiliated with either party, please remember to vote this November. Our democracy depends on it!
