Why we must vote

Oct. 2 was an important day for all here in the Mat-Su Borough. It was the day when the people of the Valley may exercise their rights to vote.

Or did they? The turnout at the last election was low, but this tally drew still fewer people. About a 16 percent of registered voters participated on Tuesday.

This should be a wake-up call to all of us to never repeat it. This is something that could easily be fixed, but will take something extraordinary. It will have to come from you, the Voters.

I say “Voter” with a capital “V” because of the power you have with that one vote. It is one of enormous power. It shapes and changes all that is great in America. Yet that power — your vote — is not being used in most cases. It is power squandered.

That one vote could have decided a critical issue or elected someone to be a mayor, governor or even a president. It could make the difference between the right candidate being elected, or allowing a wrong one to obtain office. That is a lot of power for one single vote.

But it only works if you, the Voter, take the time voice your preferences at the polls. It is a founding principle of democracy, the basis of what truly runs this nation. It is what runs this state and is the power that resides with all of us.

Tuesday’s election decided many things that will affect the residents of the borough, including re-electing Mat-Su Borough Mayor Larry DeVilbiss. And returned every assembly member to the table.

That brings up another vital issue — redistricting changes.

That was probably the biggest cause of the low turnout in the last election. Changes in borough district boundaries meant that many people’s polling locations changed. Mine did. I count myself among the lucky ones who got the news well ahead of the election. I even received a brand spanking new voter card that reflected those changes. Although the changes prompted every registered voter to be sent a new card, for many the news of these changes came late or not at all.

And some cards likely weren’t delivered to voters due to changes in local addresses used by the U.S. Post Office to deliver mail. In July, thousands of Mat-Su residents mailing addresses changed to their physical addresses; doing away with the Home Carrier route address system that has long served borough residents outside city limits.

For voters trying to find their new polling location, Election Day was a day of frustration. Valley residents would go to their usual polling place only to find out it has been moved to a new location, sometimes miles away.

I hope all the bugs will be resolved by November.

Now for the biggest problem — voter apathy. This problem has an easy solution. All it takes to eliminate it is for people to get off the couch and vote. I did.

If you plan to vote in the General Election next month, today is the deadline to register to vote. To help voters get registered, the Division of Elections Mat-Su office will be open from noon to 4 p.m., Oct. 7. Information on absentee and early voting is available online at elections.alaska.gov.

Nov. 6 is just around the corner.

Wasilla resident Daniel D. Grota retired from the U.S. Army after more than 21 years of service.