HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Election time is almost here and one local voter advocacy group believes it's important that citizens head to the polls educated. Lift Our Vote believes it is critical that all citizens know that your vote is your voice.
Lift Our Vote Co - Founder Jessica Fortune Barker believes it is time that every citizen use their voice and one way to start is by exercising the right to vote. "If you don't do politics, politics is going to do you. It is time that we truly, truly get involved, that we truly stand up and we say, hey, we're not just going to let the system continue to control our lives. it's the power of the voter."
Barker believes elections are critical, but that's not all. "The voter is vital. So we have to really remind our voters of the importance, their importance in this entire process, because without the actual voter actually exercising their rights, all everything else is null and void."
It is also important for voters to know your polling location and research candidates. "Sometimes people say, I've been voting for 20 years at the same place, and we we thank you for that. We appreciate that. However, there are things that happen sometimes polling locations close and sometimes there's, redistricting that occurs in between elections and sometimes that polling location is shifted to another area. so we encourage voters, again, to be educated as and as well-informed as possible. So when we say your vote is your voice, your vote is your power, you have to understand how to use your vote powerfully. And the only way you can do that is if you truly understand those who you are checking on that ballot box."
Barker also explained that the decisions that our current elected officials are making impact generations not just today, but also generations to come. "For instance, we have that DEI Bill that just passed in which it kind of restricts programing in universities across the state of Alabama from being inclusive. And so that is an issue that impacts young voters, but that also will impact their children who will be college age eventually."
Furthermore, Barker continued that this is what voting is all about. "Selecting voices that align with the vision that you have for your family, your life and your own community."