Did you vote yesterday?
Most Westporters did.
But not all.
It could have been tempting to pass up the election in Connecticut.
No matter who you supported, your vote for president did not matter.
In the Constitution State, the result was a foregone conclusion.
But there were other races — for US Senate and Congress, and (decided by fewer votes) State Senate and State Representative. Arguably, decisions made by those bodies have a greater impact on our lives than who lives in the White House
Still, that is not the main reason to vote.
It’s this: For over 2 centuries, Americans have fought to ensure that you could cast a ballot yesterday.
Far too many of them died for that cause.
Ours has always been an imperfect nation.
It’s taken us nearly 250 years to get to where much more of the population than just male (virtually all white) property owners could decide the future of this country.
There are still places in America where voting is difficult.
Westport — all of Connecticut, in fact — is not one of them.
So if you voted yesterday, you are not an Unsung Hero — at least, not with capital letters.
But you are a hero nonetheless. You are doing your part to carry on a tradition that means more than our Founding Fathers could ever have dreamed of.
Democracy can be doggone tiring. But it’s better than any other system. (Photo/Jo Shields)
Well said. Never understood why someone would forgo the right to vote.
What percentage of Westport voted?
Approximately 67%, I believe.
Thank you Dan…you bring us up even when the world sometimes seems it’s upside down!
Yes it has been completely upside down for the last 4 long years, hasn’t it?
53% of eligible voters country wide got off their couches which leaves well over 100m people who could care less, or for whom neither party was palatable.
so we go what we deserved
My conclusion, as I emailed Professor Woog last night, is that you can analyze exit polls, the campaign strategies or whatever, but the bottom line is that the USA is not ready for a woman President. It was true in 2016 and now 2024. Sad commentary on our electorate.
You mean, not ready for a buh-lack woman.
Tough November Russ, KH and the Yankees go down!
In 2 seconds, multiple black women come to mind who would have been elected for sure. Both parties keep coming up with toxic candidates, then blame racism when they don’t succeed.
Curious, who would those two female Black women be?
Maxine Waters, Fani Willis and Stacey Abrams.
Sorry Buck but Maxine is 86 years old, Fani is merely a County DA in GA and Stacey, who made a bold attempt at Governor but lost, is minority leader in the Georgia House. None compare with Kamala who couldn’t slay the dragon.
Scooter, the problem is more “systemic” than that. The Democratic Party has done a poor job of developing women of color. I long for the days of Shirley Chisholm and the great Barbara Jordan and that was 60 years ago. Kamala couldn’t carry their briefcase.
Different time for women. And neither one you mentioned made it above a House Rep even though Shirley ran for President. Barbara was a good friend in Houston. Abrams reminds me of her but not yet. As noted on MSNBC tonight, the Democrats have to figure out why a White mother of two in NH, said: “Trump is just like me.” Biden figured out WHY in 2020 but they caste him to the dogs.
Sorry, nothing to do with sex. Both your female candidates were flawed regardless of sex. If you nominated someone like Tulsi Gabbard it might have been different.
Hillary insulted Tulsi Gabbard out of the Democratic Party by calling her a “Russian bot.”
Tulsi left the Democratic Party in 2022 and went to work with Tucker Carlson. The grass and money were greener on the other side? No, Tom, no different.
You have a legitimate gripe against Tucker. Tulsi? Not so much.
Forgone conclusion?
You’ll never convince me that all the black people that didn’t vote for Harris were racist (unless they were also masochists).
Let’s start calling the United States a republic (as in the Pledge of Allegiance), not a democracy. Democracies tend to fail due to the corruption of the masses.
Thank you for your post. I only lived in Westport for one year 1966-1967 school year, but it was a wonderful one.
I am grateful for everyone I met and the Westport community. I may have to write a book about why.
I know why some people forgo the right to vote. They’ve never been enslaved. But that could soon change.
Australia has mandatory voting without sanctions and get 85% turnouts.