Election Day has come and gone. The ballots have been cast. If you voted, thank you for your participation in civic life. If you chose not to vote, no one wants to hear you complain about the president or any other political office decided by the 2020 general election.
West Virginia had an historic voter turnout this year, according to the secretary of state’s office. In 2008, 702,109 voters came out for the general election, but that number declined in 2012 to a little over 685,000 before spiking to more than 727,000 in 2016. Participation in the mid-term elections (2014 and 2018) was significantly lower than in presidential election years. For the 2020 general election, however, 787,049 registered voters participated. That’s almost three-quarters of active registered voters.
Monongalia County’s numbers were a little less impressive than the overall state numbers. That said, more than half of Mon County’s registered voters cast ballots this year. There were more than 42,000 votes cast for the 2020 general election and nearly half of those came from early voting.
We’re proud of every single West Virginian who cast their ballot. Voting is one of the most important ways we participate in the democratic process — but it’s not the only way.
Civic engagement is more than voting every two to four years. Civic engagement means being aware of the decisions our elected officials are making, how those decisions impact us and how those decisions are being influenced. Government can feel completely disconnected from the will of everyday people, and perhaps that’s because the everyday person only pays close attention every couple years. We have to do more than just vote for the people who represent us in government — we have to make sure they are following through on their promises and that they are acting in the interest of the voters.
Here at The Dominion Post, we’ll do our part by continuing to report on what is happening in city councils and county commissions, in the state Legislature and the national government. We’ll continue to cover policies and legislation from conception to enactment and the actions officials take throughout the process. Our news pages will keep you informed so you can hold the politicians you elected accountable.
Here on our Opinion page and in our editorials, we will offer criticism when it is due and praise when it is deserved — regardless of political affiliations, regardless of whether we endorsed them. You may not always agree with our stance — and that’s OK. Part of our responsibility as a newspaper is to shine a light on government, and that may take the form of calling out actions that are harmful or applauding ones that are beneficial. That’s one way we remain civilly engaged and we encourage you to do the same. Let your elected officials know when they are doing a good job — and especially when they are not.
A government for the people and by the people only stays that way if the people actively participate in democracy. Thank you for voting this year, but now it’s time to do more.
