Just to let you know, I'm writing this column on Thursday, Nov. 1, five days before the General Election that took place Tuesday, Nov. 6. I normally wait until the Wednesday morning after an election to complain about voter turnout, but I'm going to be out of pocket so I'll give you my best 'crystal ball' prediction on how we really care about elections.
I hope and pray what I'm about to say will be wrong. But I believe the majority of the people did not show up at the polls and cast ballots.
Last week I wrote an editorial that showed Escambia County, Ala., ranked 64th out of Alabama's 67 counties in voter turnout in the June primary elections. Figures gathered from probate judges across the state show we had a 21 percent voter turnout, which simple math tells me that 79 percent of the registered voters in Escambia County didn't vote.
What's more sad is the highest turnout in any county across the state of Alabama was Green County with a whopping 50 percent, which also tells me half of the people in that county didn't vote.
I did have a story in last week's paper that showed absentee voting in Escambia County was up. That's normally a good indication of a higher voter turnout on election day.
As I write this, I don't have a clue as to how many people showed up to vote this past Tuesday. But I'm guessing it will be less than 40 percent. Hey, 40 percent in Escambia County is double what turned out in June. My worst fear is when I see the results that we are in the 20s in term of voter turnout.
Sometimes I feel like I'm beating a dead horse when I talk about the importance of voting, but as long as I have the ability to sit behind this (I almost said typewriter) computer and publish my opinion, I'll keep beating that dead horse.
Another horse I keep beating is the timing of our General Elections and the significance of a 'holiday' we celebrate less than a week away – Veteran's Day.
By time you read this column the elections will be over. You'll know whether the Democrats or Republicans control the U.S. Congress; you'll know wether Mike Lambert or Heath Jackson will be your next sheriff and you'll know whether Larry White retains his seat on the county commission or if Scottie Stewart will take his place. I will use my 'crystal ball' to tell you that you know Kay Ivey will finally get elected by the people as Alabama's governor.
Election Day – Nov. 6; Veteran's Day – Nov. 11. I've always liked the timing because if it weren't for Nov. 11, we might not have a Nov. 6 free election. The majority of people in this county, state and nation take voting for granted. They would love to have the right to vote if we were under Japanese or German control and had no voice in government.
World War I ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Let that sink in. Had we lost that war, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria could have controlled this country. Had Japan defeated us in World War II, the official language of the United States, under dictatorship, would have been Japanese.
We have free elections in this country due to the veterans who fought in those and many other wars. It began with the Revolutionary War to gain our independence from England and continues today as we fight against terrorists who want to bring our freedom to it's knees.
If you voted Tuesday, I applaud you. If you didn't, I hope you take a long, hard look at the many men and women who died to give you that right.
On Monday, Nov. 12, many of you will have a day off because Veteran's Day fell on a Sunday. Whether you voted or not, I hope you realize that the only reason you have this day off is because of people who fought to protect our freedoms.
