Citizens across the country will go to the polls or mail in their ballots to elect representatives for each congressional district in less than a month. On Nov. 8, citizens will decide which candidates to entrust with congressional power. These elections also have the potential to flip the political majority in Congress, as Republicans hold 212 seats and Democrats hold 220. For these elections to be a complete and accurate representation of the views of the American public, every citizen must vote. There are extremely close campaigns that need citizen participation across the Commonwealth — for example, the reelection campaigns of Elaine Luria and Abigail Spanberger. Even in Charlottesville, there is a competitive race between our current Republican incumbent Bob Good and his Democratic counterpart Josh Throneburg. Good scraped by in the 2020 election, winning by less than six percent. Since then, he has made it apparent he will not work for Virginians — denying the 2020 presidential election results, calling the pandemic "phony" and opposing LGBTQ+ rights. With all of this in mind, we urge each and every reader to do research on candidates and understand the importance of these midterm elections. Identify your polling location, solidify your voting plan and, most importantly, vote — early, if you can.
Although it is crucial for citizens to research the candidates running in each election, it is also important to know the electoral processes specific to Virginia. Early voting will continue up until Nov. 5. To vote early, all you need to do is check the hours of your local registrar’s office or their satellite location, bring an acceptable form of identification and vote. If you are from another part of Virginia, whether that ranges from the Appalachians to the Eastern Shore, you can request an absentee ballot up until Oct. 28.
Both requesting an absentee ballot and early voting require planning in advance. If you do not want to commute back to your registered voting location to vote early, we encourage you to request an absentee ballot and be responsible in mailing your ballot back by Nov. 8. Even on Election Day, look at your voter registration and double check that you are going to the correct polling location. For example, in Charlottesville, first years that are registered to vote through their dorm addresses will vote in the Slaughter Recreation Center in Albemarle County. Conversely, students that live on 14th Street are registered in the City of Charlottesville and can vote at Venable Elementary School. While these are just two examples, it is necessary for each of us, especially the students, to solidify our plans to vote.
As an Editorial Board, we have compiled values we would like to see in our candidates. Last week, we published a lead editorial on Governor Glenn Youngkin’s newly-implemented transphobic policies in Virginia public schools. We condemned these actions and find it imperative that our next representatives are committed to protecting the rights of transgender youth. We also believe representatives should be advocates for intersectional reproductive justice, women’s rights and bodily autonomy. We demand candidates uphold proven truths, such as climate change and certified election results.
Our elected officials must be emphatic, respectful and transparent. Empathy means recognizing the pain that women, transgender youth and people of other marginalized identities experience in our country. Respect means both accepting objective truth and listening to the demands of an elected official’s constituents. Transparency means being honest — communicating policy positions to voters with directness and, if elected, serving with a willingness to let your constituents know where you are falling short and taking action.
Midterm elections are often forgotten because the presidency and governorship are not on the line. But the local and state elections that we decide at the polls during midterms are crucial to upholding democracy. We need people serving us in our local counties just as much as we need people guiding national conversations in Washington, D.C. Local and state candidates are often uniquely situated to serve their constituents in a way that national candidates are not. We as voters must turn out Nov. 8 to elect people dedicated to protecting the rights of us all.
The Cavalier Daily Editorial Board is composed of the Executive Editor, the Editor-in-Chief, the two Opinion Editors, the two Senior Associates and an Opinion Columnist. The board can be reached at eb@cavalierdaily.com.
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