When you vote for a candidate, we hope you consider what that person stands for. All candidates make generalized pledges – they will support veterans, they will defeat ISIS – but no one acting alone can accomplish those things. And just about every decision requires money to back it, which translates into some form of increased taxation, regardless of your candidate’s political party.
We suggest you look much more deeply – who supports your candidate, whom do they support, what do their past actions suggest about their future votes, and do they actually bother to attend to their elected duties.
Do they vote the strict party line or seek to compromise across the aisle? Whatever your preference on that issue, you should know what to expect of the people you seek to elect.
And these are only some of the areas you would do well to consider.
Because local elections usually impact our wallets the most, we encourage you to pay particular attention to your state legislators’ records. While most prospective legislators in New Hampshire say they oppose a state income tax and a sales tax, it’s worth asking them how they propose to handle continually rising property taxes to support our schools and local government and whatever downshifting of state obligations – such as retirement – they give us. It’s an answer – and more importantly, a solution – that needs to be found right away before none of us will be able to afford our homes.
This year’s November election is particularly significant, with as diametrically opposite a group of candidates for President as one could imagine. Control of the U.S. House and Senate are on the block as well, and in New Hampshire we play an important role in that battle.
Sadly, it’s as ugly an election as we’ve ever seen, and truth doesn’t seem to play a major role.
We remind you that every candidate is going to smile broadly, shake as many hands as possible, promise wonderful things that no individual could ever deliver. Should those fake promises persuade us? Don’t get sidetracked by the packaging.
Your vote counts, but it means so much more if it’s not based on inflammatory rhetoric or physical appearance or a bright smile or a party label. All those will become nothing more substantial than a fading memory after the election.
If you’ve always voted one party, be open-minded and listen to what the candidate of the other party says as you make your decision. Think about what kind of country you want this to be.
But don’t sit out the election because you don’t like anyone on the list. Someone will win the election, and we suspect you’ll be sorry if you haven’t weighed in. So don’t forget to vote Nov. 8.