I begin writing this as the state is reporting 96% of the vote. Scott Brown was declared the winner of the Massachusetts Special Election to the US Senate. He's taken 52% of the vote, Coakley 47%, and Kennedy (no relation) 1%. With over 2 million votes and a record turn out -- they're predicting more MA residents voted tonight than for the Presidential election in 2008 -- the "bluest of the blue states" just overwhelmingly voted Republican for this seat, for the first time in 46 years. Stealing away the much-needed 60th vote in the Senate, and not allowing President Obama to keep his majority hold -- was quite possibly the biggest shock this country has seen politically, in a long time. Most around the country assumed Coakley would win -- perhaps simply because she's the Democrat in the race. After all, we're filling the seat of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the Lion of the Senate, and a fiercely loved politician in Massachusetts, which is often referred to as the BLUEST state. It only makes sense for this particular seat to be filled by another Democrat right? Even though Kennedy's legacy will never be matched in my, my children's, and possibly my grandchildren's lifetime, I think there was a certain level of "that's just not going to happen" when the reality of a Republican winning the race came into play...
One of Brown's "stock statements" as I call them, you know, the sentence you hear out of a candidate's mouth probably millions of times during their campaign, "stock statements"...was "it's not the Kennedys' seat, it's not the Democrat's seat, it's the people's seat". Clearly that sentence struck a chord with many -- two weeks ago Coakley had a more than 30-point lead in the polls over Brown, and tonight she has lost with more than 100,000 votes between Brown and her.
WOW is pretty much the only word I have to express the reaction I'm having at the moment.
I will not speak on who I voted for today, or how I feel personally about this election, I will only tell you that YES I voted, and YES I voted for my heart, my beliefs, and what matters most to me...not anyone else, not the country, not my friends, not my family, for ME.
What I do want to discuss is the change in this campaign over the past 2 weeks, and how quickly things changed in the race, from a "surefire win for Coakley" to "anybody's game" this morning, and even an hour ago.
Political Correspondants across the board are saying this campaign and election will be studied and written about in political science classrooms for years, perhaps even decades, to come. Whether or not that's true, I know this state will be talking about this for days and days, and months and months.
As a teenager approaching the age of 18 and the right to vote, we are told ad nauseum that "our voice matters" and that "every vote counts", but it's hard to believe that when before that birthday, you had no voice, you were not allowed to be counted, and no matter how a political decision affected your life, you were not old enough to vote, so you had no say. This is how I felt -- I voted out of sense of obligation to my parents, especially my Dad, who were so excited that I could vote -- and probably voted for who they told me to vote for without really researching their issues and platforms.
I didn't care about politics for the first 9 or so years that I could vote. Odd, considering my father majored in government, was extremely active in local politics for the first 10 years of my life (probably more), and campaigns were very closely followed AND debated in my house. I grew up knowing that my Mother and Father did not always agree on the issues, and very often voted for different candidates. But for me, it was so distant and disconnected, that I couldn't be bothered...I had lines to memorize, dances to practice, friends to call on the phone, homework to do, boys to flirt with, and rehearsals to go to.
I then began to realize that it is only through our votes that we can truly be heard in a way that is unlike any other. By pushing that button or breaking that chad, or bubbling in that bubble...we are given the opportunity to decide who gets to be our mayor, governor, senator, congressman, president, etc. Through these votes we are given the POWER to change the balance from Republican to Democrat, back to Republican again, purely by our vote.
These past few weeks have been incredible to me. I was hugely disappointed in the final debate, feeling that all 3 candidates resorted to name calling and personal insults, instead focusing on getting their issues out to us, the voting public, and making sure we understood their agendas should they be elected to fill this extremely important Senate Seat.
I have found over the past few years, from the election of Deval Patrick, to President Obama, and now to this amazing upset and tide-turner of a Senate election -- that I find elections truly exciting and exhiliarating. They're infuriating when they get desperate and resort to childish name-calling and manipulation -- and make me want to not participate at all....but then I remind myself that my vote is my voice.
My vote IS my voice.
If I want my voice to be heard as a resident of this state, as a citizen of this country, then I owe it to myself to VOTE each and every time there is an election. No matter how "minor" the election, local or national, my vote IS my voice.
This election, if no other in my lifetime, exemplifies this. So I say to everyone, whether you are approaching your 18th birthday and your first vote, or if you are my age and still not sure where you stand in politics, or if you even care, and even if you've been voting most of your life...vote whenever you can.
These are the guidelines I use to decide my vote...
~Vote and know who you're voting FOR...and WHY.
~Vote for your heart and what you believe in.
~Listen and partake in political debates with friends and family from BOTH parties to learn as much as you can not only about the issues, but about where YOU stand in your beliefs. However, make sure that in these debates, you respect each other, and listen to each other. If you cannot respectfully contribute to the debate, don't participate.
~Learn about BOTH SIDES of the coin so you truly know where you stand.
~If you do not like either candidate, that's okay, VOTE ANYWAY. Sometimes it's not about liking a candidate enough to vote them in, it's about choosing who you DO NOT want in that position and voting against them.
~Keep yourself informed on the FACTS on the issues you care about most, whether it's healthcare reform, equal rights for everyone, education, etc...know what you WANT and vote for it.
~Don't make it a popularity vote. Just because one person may or may not be as "personable" as the other, stick to the issues and vote for the issues.
~Don't be afraid to cross over if you like a candidate "on the other side" better. Our country is set up on our right to choose who we want, regardless of party lines (after primaries of course), and even though it feels a little easier to vote within your party, don't be afraid to step outside the lines if you feel the other candidate will best serve YOU.
~If you are not yet 18 -- REGISTER ON YOUR 18TH BIRTHDAY so you can at least have the ability to vote, even if you are not excited about politics or the process or the candidates...as soon as you can be heard, use your voice through voting.
~If you are heartbroken by the outcome of the election, as more than a million are tonight, VOTE NEXT TIME ANYWAY.
~If you don't vote -- I believe you give up your right to have an opinion on how the election turns out...no right to complain or celebrate what happens as a result....until the next time you vote and give your input.
~Your vote is your business, nobody else's. You are not obligated to tell anyone who you voted for.
This election will forever be summed up in one quote I heard right when the announcement was made, by a political correspondent whose name I don't know...
"The bluest of the blue states just told the country to let a little more red in"
WOW....WOW.
As I'm finishing this, the news is reporting that only 45% of registered voters came out to vote for this election...that's 55% of the state who DIDN'T VOTE and didn't share their voice...and that's SAD...very very sad.
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