An Off Day Not A Day Off

Things seemed to be a little off this morning. After getting a late start to the day due to an early morning meeting and before heading off to work, I meandered over to our local polling location to submit my annual votes. It is an off year so by the time I got there I was only number 42 for the day. What caught me off guard a bit, besides the parking situation at the church, was the fact that this was the first time that I had to fill out a paper ballot in my life. Sitting in the partitioned booth, it felt like I was taking the SATs again.

That experience has pretty much summed up this whole election cycle so far this year. Things are getting done and the positions are being stated but the format seems a little different and we are having to work a little bit more to find what we are looking for. After scanning the entire paper, front and back, there wasn’t anything or anyone that would change my mind which left me only having to fill in one circle in order to complete my ballot.

Honestly, at this point, I don’t expect things to be much different next year. While I keep looking at the various positions on both primaries, it is pretty clear where my vote will be cast. Well, to a certain extent anyway. As was clear in the debates last week, it is still a crowded field with more viable candidates than I can recall ever taking the stage at one time. There are a few that I would like to see continue, others I would prefer drop out, and a couple that have really piqued my interest. At least that is my perspective on the Republican side… there really isn’t anyone that I could even come close to even feigning support for on the other ticket.

While this may be an off year, the next election is one that will make a huge difference in this country… hopefully for the better. Now that this day is coming to an end, we should really see the campaigns taken to another level over the next couple of months. And as the field thins, we should get a much better sense of who is the right person for the job, who can lead this country, and who truly has our best interests in mind. So buckle up and get ready for the ride.