Our Viewpoint

Can one person change the world?

The skeptic in me prevents me from giving a resounding “YES!” to this well-worn, oft-repeated saying, because change can often seem too slow, and the world can often seem too big. But I do believe that one individual’s actions can influence others, that one person’s decisions can be the start of a larger movement. This is much more apparent, much more convincing, when we take a local instead of a global view.

In last week’s editorial, I mentioned that one of our civic duties is voting. Why? Because taken globally, your vote is one in billions. Even nationally, it’s one in millions. But locally? One in thousands. Suddenly, showing up to the polls becomes extremely important. Not convinced? In one particular race last week, the difference in advancing to the general election in November was determined by a margin of just 32 votes.

Last week, The Ledger reported that of the county’s 9,795 registered voters, only 4,872 ballots were cast in last week’s primaries. That’s less than half. Yet in the last national election, the Pew Research center reported that voter turnout was 62%. If we want to create change, then our thinking is backward. We’re putting our energy into the wrong voting booths.

Voting in “small” elections, compared to national ones, is actually where our voices are loudest. Even those not well versed in statistics can see that the smaller the group, the bigger the impact of a vote. In the same way a local news outlet seems more pertinent to you than a world news organization, local elections also hit closer to home. The people we elect in our county make policies that directly affect our taxes, our transportation, our safety, our schools, and our land. This is where change begins. This is where individuals make a difference. But here in Sanders County, it appears that less than half of us believe that, and that’s the first thing we need to change.

— Annie Wooden