Originally posted on November 7, 2006 on Peter's old MySpace Blog. Used as a reference in commemorating Blog 3000 on April 16, 2013
Did you know...
- That several of our states, including California, Idaho, Oregon, Texas and Washington, became states by just ONE vote?
- That in 1948, Lyndon B. Johnson, our 36th president, became a U.S. senator by a ONE vote margin?
- And
that same year, if Thomas E. Dewey had gotten ONE vote more per
precinct in Ohio and California, the presidential election would have
been thrown to the U.S. House of Representatives, where Dewey enjoyed
more support than his rival -- incumbent Harry S. Truman? In fact, Dewey
was expected to win the general election by a landslide, so most
Republicans stayed home. Only 51.5 percent of the electorate voted in
1948, and Truman defeated Dewey.
Not convinced?
- In
the 1960 presidential election, ONE additional vote per precinct in
Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey and Texas would have denied John F.
Kennedy the presidency and put Richard M. Nixon in office eight years
earlier.
- In recent years,
the outcomes of many state and congressional races have been reversed as
recounts have shifted a handful of votes from one candidate to another.
- Each
and every vote is the voice of a citizen of the United States of
America. One voice speaking out can change the course of history.
WHY VOTE?
...Because
it is your fundamental right as an American, and the most basic means
by which you have a voice in how your government works. By voting, you
participate in a process that determines who will represent you, your
family, and your neighbors in your community, your state, and your
country.
Most states require that you register to vote, and
aside from registering at your local election office, you may register
by mail, when you get or renew your drivers' license, when you apply or
are recertified for benefits in public assistance agencies, and in
agencies serving people with disabilities.
States must also conduct
registration in an agency system of their choosing, such as libraries or
unemployment offices. In addition to these places, many civic
organizations and political parties sponsor voter registration drives at
colleges and universities, shopping malls, work sites, fairs, and other
community events.
While the number of individuals registered to
vote is at an all time high, we have yet to see a corresponding rise in
active voting. In the last presidential election in 2000, 51.3 percent
of the voting age population turned out to vote. The numbers tend to
fall during the off-year elections for Congress: in 1998, only 36.4
percent of the voting age population made it to the polls.
Why
don't more Americans register and vote? The most likely reason–they
don't think their one vote will make a difference. But what if just one
person on every street or in every voting precinct thought that way? We
might find that the course of history would change.
