Log in

Opinion

Cantor: Our job as voters

Posted

As I have said before, I am an Independent voter. My late husband and I registered as a member of the Republican Party and one as a member of the Democratic Party.

We wanted to get the propaganda sent out for all candidates and weigh the pros and cons for ourselves.

From the time I was a little girl, 3/4 of a century ago, I was off to the polls with a grandparent, or aunt, uncle or mom and dad. Not just to vote, though it was hammered home that is why we were going to the polls.

Get there before sunrise to make sure everything was neat and tidy and everything was in good working order. Go over all materials to be able to answer any questions, and to understand the regulations pertaining to voting and the polls to maintain the integrity of the right to vote in Ohio.

After moving to Scottsdale, Arizona from Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1960, my dad continued to “watch the polls” and read out the numbers, and this time, to also read the totals on the voting machines and report them to both his employer, the Arizona Republic, and to Maricopa County Recorders Office.

Please be advised we did not operate with stone tablets and hammer and chisel, nor papyrus with cattail pens. This is where I say, “I digress.” Paper ballots, and chads. Remember those things? Ahh the good old days.

As a student of political science and government for years all through school and since. I have watched with amazement what has gone on since 2015... One thing being the slow death of the Republican Party. Starting with former Representative Gingrich from Georgia through the present, there is no trace of that party, anywhere, except in Arizona and Representative Rusty Bowers.

Thank you, sir for standing strong.

Integrity and intelligence are two things I look for first in candidates. How does a candidate view the office they are applying for? How do they interpret their oath of office? And, how do they define the issues of the people they must attend to? Integrity and intelligence can be displayed in answers to those three questions.

We don’t all see answers to these questions in the same way, but knowing a candidate has the general knowledge of the job they are applying for and that they are able to discuss them, goes a long way to accomplishing good governance. This is what our job is as voters. Sort it out.

Get busy, there is work to be done.