Yes, I have voted
'Yes, I have voted." Or "No, but I'm going to vote." For the past 55 years, one of these has been my answer to the inevitable small-town question I have gotten, "Have you voted?" It was hard in 2016. Going up the street and taking about 10 minutes to vote was hard. But, I'll get back to this momentarily. I'll try to explain.
The first time I voted was in 1960. I was 18 years old, and being a Georgian, I could vote. My recollection was that Georgia was one of the few states in the country that allowed 18-year-olds to vote. I was proud of my state for this. So, being white and 18, I could vote. And I did.
The choices in the presidential contest, the race I, of course, remember, were John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. Now you know why I remember it. I was excited at being allowed to vote, thought it was a great honor and took making my choice very seriously. Little could I have imagined that Kennedy would be assassinated in his first term, and that Nixon would later be elected but would resign in his second term while facing almost certain impeachment for his involvement in the Watergate scandal.
Since 1960, I have voted in just about every election in which I was allowed to vote: primaries, general, city, county, bond issues, etc. I think one of the requirements of good citizenship is that you vote.
In 1972, I ran for the state Legislature. It was the seat that had been held by Sam Nunn. Nunn ran for the U.S. Senate. Cullen Talton ran for sheriff of Houston County. I was elected and my name would be on the ballot 15 more times. Nunn was elected and had a stellar career as an exemplary U.S. senator. I regret that he did not run for president. Talton was elected and is still our sheriff. He's running again. He has been outstanding. I voted in all of these elections, and if I live, I will vote for Cullen in 2016.
Voting is a privilege and is necessary if we are to preserve the republic. I've been through Selma, Alabama, three times, and the last time I went, I drove over the Edmund Pettus Bridge two or three times. I saw the movie "Selma." Voting has been easy for me. It was hard, very hard for many. If you don't believe me, see the movie; it depicts the difficulty many had in being able to vote.
Yes, voting will be hard for me in 2016. I was not and am not pleased with the choice of candidates. I considered skipping the primary voting. I knew it wouldn't take long, just a short walk from our office up the sidewalk on Ball Street and by the side of the New Perry Hotel then across Main Street to the old Houston County Courthouse in downtown Perry. I considered skipping the primary voting and waiting to see who the candidates were in the general election.
I kept thinking about 1960 and Nixon and Kennedy. I thought about the 16 times my name had been on the ballot. I thought about Larry III, and how hard we worked to get people out to vote for him. I thought about Sam and Cullen and all the ones I had voted for (and maybe one to two against) over the years. And, I thought about the movie "Selma." I walked up town and advance voted.
Yes, I'm worried about our country. Really worried. But, I don't subscribe to the oft heard lament, "our country is in the worst shape it has ever been." Remember what you learned about the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War and how precariously things hung in the balance? What about the Civil War? And the Great Depression? Then there was World War I and World War II. I could give other examples.
Things have been bad before — really bad. And, my view is that things are not good now. But, I hope and pray that we will survive; that our culture and ideals will survive, and that continued democratic government and freedom will survive.
I have concluded that "not voting" is not the answer. So, when you see me and ask, "Have you voted?" my answer will be either, "No, but I'm going to vote," or "Yes, I have voted." I think this is better than the alternative. I hope you did, too. And, that you will continue to vote in the future.
Note: I wrote this column on March 1, 2016, and it was published in the March/April edition of JAMES magazine. It is republished here with the approval of that magazine.
Larry Walker is a practicing attorney in Perry. He served 32 years in the Georgia General Assembly and presently serves on the University System of Georgia Board of Regents. Email: lwalker@whgmlaw.com.
This story was originally published April 16, 2016 at 7:36 PM with the headline "Yes, I have voted ."