Nov. 8 is Election Day, although many states, including Michigan, have already opened up early voting.

Are you going to vote, or have you already exercised your right to vote?

And yes, it is a right, but, more importantly, it is the backbone of a democracy, or, in our case, a representative democracy.

That is exactly what our Founding Fathers had in mind, although they missed the mark a bit and we had to amend the Constitution to make up for their oversight. We amended our U.S. Constitution three times to expand the voting rights: giving Blacks the right to vote in 1870, women the right to vote in 1920, and 18-year-olds the right to vote in 1971.

So how many of us actually vote in non-presidential year elections?

It’s embarrassingly low.

In 2018, only 57% of registered Michiganders voted, and, nationally, it was even lower: Only 53% voted. That’s just a tad bit over half of us, which means nearly half of us didn’t think it important enough to vote, and that’s sad.

We are blessed to live in the United States. One only has to look at the hundreds of thousands of people trying to get in here each month.

But living in a representative democracy comes with responsibilities. None more critical to our future than voting.

Maybe you are completely turned off with the partisan games they play in Washington. Maybe you think your vote doesn’t count. Maybe you think it doesn’t matter because politicians will do whatever they want, anyway.

I get all that. I have had all those feelings at one time or another, too.

But I was wrong. My vote does count. It counts equally as any other vote, and I now realize it is my responsibility to raise my voice and ballot come Election Day.

And what if it isn’t a presidential election this year? Doesn’t matter.

In fact, Tip O’Neill, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, once said: “All politics is local.” He was referring to the decisions made in Washington and how they affect lives back home. But, when you get right down to where the rubber meets the road, local politicians have a greater impact on most of our lives than the federal clowns.

As representatives on our school boards, city councils, and county commissions, those folks determine the quality of roads we drive on, the level of law enforcement we will enjoy, the quality of schools our children attend, not to mention the amount of local taxes we pay.

They oversee departments that control our water supply, keep us safe, handle our waste, remove the snow, and maintain our parks. They enter contracts on our behalf to deliver energy and other services to our homes, yet most of those people do that for very little pay.

Those local candidates bravely throw their hats into the ring because they believe they can make a difference. They know some will win and others will lose, yet the desire to improve conditions right here in our home towns drive them to lay their ideas and beliefs on the line for all to see.

That takes courage.

How can we recognize and reward their courage? By voting. By stepping up to our fundamental responsibility as Americans to vote and to carry out democracy in its purest form. No games and gimmicks here. No delegates or super delegates carrying our vote in their pocket to some national party for confetti lovers.

I believe that is what our forefathers had in mind. That is what our ancestors fought and died for.

On Nov. 8, keep the American Dream alive and vote. Do it for yourself and for your family. In fact, if you can, make it a family affair and take the kids with you. Teach them early that one voice, one vote can and does make a difference.

And do it for those people who have asked that their names be placed on the ballot for your consideration. Leaders that share the same streets, the same air, the same church pews as us. Leaders who know us by our first name. Local folk, just like us, but with the courage and conviction to try and make our home towns a better, safer place to raise our families.

I may not always agree with them, but I will always respect them, and I’ll show them by voting on Nov. 8.

Let me know if you think your vote counts, at gregawtry@awtry.com.

Greg Awtry is the former publisher of the Scottsbluff (Neb.) Star-Herald and Nebraska’s York News-Times. He is now retired and living in Hubbard Lake. Greg can be contacted at gregawtry@awtry.com.