Voting is a very important right. As a citizen of the United States of America you have the right to vote at the age of eighteen. You will be able to vote in local, state and national elections. By exercising your rite to vote, you decide how your city, county, state and the country should be governed, and by whom. Your family members and neighbors vote for whether or not to build a new school or play ground. This right gives us a say on how things are to be done.

Throughout American history, citizens have gained the right to vote, changing the voice of America. African Americans, Native Americans, women, and young adults were given voting privileges after the American government changed laws to address citizens' rights.

Voting participation in the 18-24 year old age bracket is embarrassingly low nationwide. For instance, during the Presidential election years between 1972 and 2000, the national youth voter turnout rate declined by 10 percentage points.

ONE VOTE
One classic statement which pops up every year around election time is “I’m only one person. What difference can my vote possibly make?” This belief is probably the most common of all reasons why Americans stay away from the polls. The question still exists, does one vote really count? The answer is unquestionably, yes. In fact, contrary to what people may believe, election histories prove that just one vote is often the difference between victory and defeat for a candidate. Historically, one vote or less per precinct has decided some very important races.

Many believe that the 2000 presidential election was the closest election in history, but it really wasn’t. Many elections over the course of American history have been decided by a small number of votes. This problem even affected our founding fathers during the election for the third President of the United States. During that time all the candidates ran and the one with the most votes became President and the one that came in second became Vice President. The election was so close that Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr were tied for first place. Since it could not be decided it went to the House of Representatives for a decision. The House was tied for 35 ballots in a row. On the 36th ballot, Thomas Jefferson won by one vote. That one vote changed history.

In 1867, one vote gave the United States the state of Alaska. The Alaska Purchase of 1867 was ratified by just one vote, paving the way for the territory to become America’s largest state in 1958.

In 1868, one vote saved President Andrew Johnson from being removed from office.

In 1916, one vote in each of the voting areas of California reelected President Woodrow Wilson. If Wilson's opponent, Charles E. Hughes, had received an additional vote in each one of California's voting precincts, he would have defeated Wilson.

In 1948, Lyndon B. Johnson was elected to the U.S. Senate with only 87 more votes than his opponent in a race where 988,295 votes were cast.

Also in 1948, one vote per precinct gave Harry S. Truman the presidency. If Truman's opponent, Thomas E. Dewey, had received one vote more per precinct in Ohio and California, there would have been a tie and the House of Representatives would have decided the election. And because Dewey had more support in the House than Truman, Dewey would have won.

In 1960, John F. Kennedy outpolled Richard Nixon by only 113,000 votes. One vote per precinct would have elected Richard Nixon rather than John F. Kennedy president.

In 1974, James Rhodes of Ohio became governor when he defeated the incumbent by only 10,000 votes -- less than one vote per precinct in that state.

The 1976 election between President Ford and Governor Carter was close in the Electoral College, but Carter won by a commanding 2,000,000 votes in the popular votes.

In the 2002 elections, congressional seats like Colorado’s seventh district were decided by as few as 121 votes.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Will your vote make the difference in upcoming elections? It could. Below are links to several voter awareness and registration sites.

Center for Voting and Democracy

Declare Yourself

Project Vote Smart

National Mail Voter Registration Form

New Millennium Young Voters Project

New Voters Project

Participate America

Rock the Vote

CIRCLE- Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement