Whether you think it is your right or plight, if you are an adult citizen of the European Union, you have a right to vote in the 2024 elections. Today, I exercised that right.
Estimations claim that 373 million people are eligible to vote in this round, a number I cannot even comprehend.
It was especially weird since I voted in an almost empty place. Since many people are still at work and vote in the evenings, it was a quick and somewhat liminal experience bringing the gigantic candidate form to the booth.
Mixed feelings
For me, politics is a sore subject. When you get paid to solve problems all day using logic and are aware of repeating past patterns, it's plain to see that the world is not in a good state right now.
I don't feel at home with any particular party, although there is one I consistently keep coming back to. Voting guides, where you can check how much you match with any party, barely show scores over 60%, and I find more parties I wouldn't vote for than the other way around.
That doesn't mean that I think voting is useless. On the contrary, I think it's a low-effort way of influencing your country.
Everyone, vote
Voting is one of the few direct ways to affect the world around you. Since some problems need a large-scale, politics-driven solution, and I think everyone should do it.
(That said, only vote if you decide based on better factor than "this one shouts and kicks the loudest against the establishment".)
Seriously, please do
With the advancement of the far-right worldwide and the recent Dutch national vote results, I am worried about what this will bring.
However, if there really is a silent majority that isn't radicalized in either direction of the political spectrum, please spur yourselves into action—vote for the future and the lives of everyone who has to live with this decision.
Wrap-up
I hope for balanced election results, not on either extreme end of the spectrum. I want a vote that doesn't prioritize short-term wins but considers the sustainability of our future, solidifies human rights, and doesn't sell us out to technology companies.
I wonder if it is idle hope, but hope I must.
Go vote!