Whether we like it or not, one of the two people running for president will step into the role of the most powerful leader in the world, with all that this implies, on Tuesday, Nov. 8. And whether we like it or not, that person will broadly shape some of the contours of our lives.
So here's the thing, are you registered to vote? If not, the deadline to get registered is Oct. 18. You must be a U.S. citizen, 18 years old to actually vote, a county resident for 30 days before the election, and not be on probation or parole for a felony conviction
If you are not registered to vote, you can fill out a voter registration form that is to be mailed or hand-delivered by the Oct. 18 deadline. You can get the form online at njelections.org.
Once you complete the registration form, you can mail it in or bring it to the Board of Elections at 555 Shiloh Pike, Monday to Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. If you have questions, you can call at (856) 453-5801.
Maybe some people don't vote because they can't get to the polls or they're too busy. In New Jersey, any voter can vote by mail for any reason by using a "Vote by Mail" ballot which you can apply for on nj.gov/elections in English or Spanish.
You have to be a qualified and registered voter to apply for a "Vote By Mail" ballot and the deadline for requests by mail is seven days before the election.
Someone using a "Vote By Mail" ballot may also apply in person at the County Clerk's Office at 60 W. Broad Street, on any working day until 3 p.m. up to the day before the election.
If you are registered, but you're not sure where to vote, you can find out online by visiting voter.njsvrs.com.
You can also call the Board of Elections at (856) 453-5801 or the County Clerk's Office at 856-453-4860.
Registered or not, people have a lot of excuses for not voting. I'm troubled by the number of people who say they're not going to vote because they don't like either candidate — as if it were a choice between honey mustard and barbecue or between Jazz and heavy metal.
I think liking a candidate is a plus if you can get there, because it means we cast our vote with some enthusiasm and confidence. But whether we like any of them or not, one of them will sit in the seat of power and what happens there will impact our lives. In that sense, we must choose.
In voting, regardless of anything else, sometimes we're simply selecting the one we think will do the least amount of harm, whether to institutions, laws, rights, a fragile peace, a recovering economy, or whatever.
Whether we vote or not, someone will be entrusted with an enormous amount of power to do either good or ill, sometimes it comes down to choosing the one we think best understands the limits of power, but also the opportunities that power brings.
I'm surprised at the number of people who buy into the "my vote doesn't count" idea. I can see how anyone might believe this, but then I remember that the 2000 presidential election came down to a few hundred votes in Palm Beach County Florida. That night every vote was huge.
Maybe I'm naïve, but I do believe that every vote counts because it represents a voice and every voice matters. Each vote, cast in secret, is a single stitch, part of larger pattern of threads that when stitched together form a truly American fabric.
Whether that fabric shreds or rips or frays at the edges — or if it is strong and durable and able to withstand the storms in our national journey — depends to some degree on whether we engage by voting, and then of course by how we vote.
So then, maybe we're left with this: Someone will be president whether we like them or not, so choose wisely. Don't choose leaning toward the past because we can't change it. Choose leaning toward the future precisely because we can.
Your vote may seem like just another "either-or" choice, one of millions and of little consequence, but every vote matters, whether we like it or not.
Albert B. Kelly is mayor of Bridgeton. Contact him by phone at 856-455-3230 Ext. 200.