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Back to Subjects - Political Science

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None There are certain things young adults look forward to at the turning of each age. When I approached the age of sixteen, I couldn’t wait to get my temporary drivers license. Then, I could take my classes to help me pass the driving test. After passing the test, I would then receive my drivers license. At the age of seventeen, I was permitted to view R rated movies without an adult. But as I approached the age of eighteen I thought, "What could I possibly get out of turning eighteen? Wow, big deal, I’d be considered an adult." I never thought it could mean a little more freedom. One day in my senior year government class my teacher told us we had to fill out a register to vote form for class participation points. She said she would turn them in as we turned eighteen. The only thought that went through my head was, "All right, easy points. No problem." Then our teacher said after we filled out our forms, she was going to talk to us about our right to vote and how the privilege is so often abused. I didn’t think it was a big deal until Mrs. Wells, my government teacher, began to inform us. She talked about the "responsible" and "irresponsible" voters in our society. Mrs. Wells told our class that as U.S. citizens, we have the right to vote responsibly. Then she went over her perspective of the right to vote responsibly. It basically consisted of researching each issue or candidate thoroughly, and making your decision wisely. She also told us if we were unsure of the issue or a person we should not vote for it. I listened to her talk, but it seemed like a lot of work. I wasn’t too sure how "responsibly" I would vote, but I promised myself I would try my best to make myself a well informed U.S. voting citizen. At the end of class she told us that if we were eighteen by November 7, 2000, we could vote in May for the primary election. Since I would turn eighteen in January I would be able to vote. I thought that would be neat to vote and get some researching practice. Then I would have a good idea of what would happen during the actual presidential election. It turned out that the primary wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be. My friend Kelli and I went together to our elementary school to vote for our party in the primary election. We registered under our parties and received our ballots. We then split up and went into our own booths. I used the pin to punch my votes. As a registered republican, I voted between George W. Bush and John McCain. Of course I voted for Bush and after the votes were tallied, he became the leader of the republican party. I then voted for the issues I knew about and left the unfamiliar ones blank. I didn’t want to vote for an issue that I didn’t know anything about. I took most of my teachers words of advice seriously. As the year went on, I heard more and more news about the election. From the month of September to the day before the election, there seemed to be a presidential debate on each local channel. I would watch the first part of a debate and end up getting mad at a candidate and quit watching. In those two months I honestly got sick of hearing about the presidential race. I did my research on each of the candidates and patiently waited for November 7, 2000, election day. As it got down to the week before the election the press received word of Bush having a DUI (driving under the influence) on his record. That evening he admitted to getting the DUI and told the U.S. how drinking is no longer a problem for him and it would not effect his presidency. It turns out he got the DUI twenty some years ago. Like all breaking news, after a few days the DUI was not heard of much. Then came election day. I went to the voting polls with my mother on our way to the store. We stood in line for nearly fifteen minutes waiting for the booths to free up. As I got to the front of the line I signed my name in the book, got my ballot, and went into an open booth. I slid my card in and began to read and punch my vote. I found the directions to be very clear and simple. I punched my ballot and when I finished, I returned it to the volunteers who were running the poll. When I finally got home that evening, I watched some television. I watched the map of the U.S. in the corner of the screen very closely. Each time a states electoral votes were awarded to a candidate, I announced it to my family. We were all behind Bush. I was getting tired, and as it came down to the last few states, I fell asleep. I was interested, but not enough to stay up and wait for the final results. I also figured that since it was so close, there would be a recount. When I woke up the next morning, I asked my mother what happened and she told me that Florida gave their electoral votes Gore, then took them back and gave them to Bush. She also told me that Al Gore called Bush to concede. Gore then called him back and stated that he would demand a hand recount in Florida. The hand recounts resulted in a closer race than the results from the computers. Apparently, the computers didn’t read the ballots if they weren’t completely punched and the paper was not attached. The next thing I knew, both sides had attorney’s for the situation and were preparing for hearings about the votes. The final decision was supposed to be in one week after election day, but because of the big difference between the hand and computer counts, it was delayed more. Currently, there has three counts in counties of Florida. Once by the computer and twice by hand. Now the hearings are to determine which results to use. I found it very humorous watching the news and part of the news was footage of the Ryder trucks full of ballots and protected by armored unmarked cars. It kind of reminded me of the footage from the O.J. Simpson case when they news teams followed the infamous white bronco. Within each truck are the ballots for each county in Florida. I am still unclear of where they are taking them, but I’m sure that somehow they will all be recounted again. Once again, it has really lost my interest. I am so tired of hearing about the problems they are having. Some want to include numerous absentee ballots that came in from overseas. Some want to just use the computer count. Others say the computer was inaccurate and we should do another hand count and use those results. The news has gotten very old very quickly. I wish they would just decide what they are going to do and do it. The campaign was "You decide 2000." Now who is deciding? Bibliography:

Word Count: 1242