Please Vote!

By Kevin Tyson

Local school board elections are imminent. In Claremont, this is where most of our property taxes, which have recently been raised, in some cases significantly, are allocated. Turnout at school board elections is notoriously low. People employed by the School Administrative Unit, teachers, paraprofessionals, and parents of students attending the schools managed by the SAU are more likely to turn out than the run-of-the-mill property taxpayer.

This low voter turnout is a problem. In his second treatise on government, John Locke said legitimate government governs with the people’s consent. The way our democracy works, the first past the post-voting model, you are not denying your consent to be governed by not voting. Instead, it is empowering those who vote to inflict government on you. Many proposals have addressed this problem, from ranked choice voting to mandatory inclusion of None-Of-The-Above as a choice on all ballots. These proposals require state-level action, such as changes to the Constitution, and cannot be adopted in time for our next election.

To prevent our democracy from further sliding into a mobocracy, you must vote. Sometimes, this may mean not voting for the single candidate running for a specific office. Sometimes, this may mean voting against the proposed school budget. In any case, it is essential that you contact the SAU, find out who is running for what positions, read a copy of the proposed budget, and make an informed choice on election day, which is March 12, 2024.