One of my favorite baby pictures of my daughter was taken at a political rally when she was only five months old. There she is, in my arms, standing in a high school gymnasium surrounded by dedicated voters working for change. My girl’s been to rallies, campaign fundraisers, the Iowa caucus, and has shaken the hands of candidates. We’re an election family — if there’s any kind of voting going on, whether it’s for the local school board in our tiny Iowa town or for president of the United States, you better believe we’re headed to the polls that day.
Ever since my daughter was born five years ago, she’s accompanied us every time. To everything. This will be the first year in her entire life that she won’t be going to the polls with me. My family will be voting by mail to minimize our exposure to COVID-19, and it’s throwing me for a loop, that’s for sure.
To be honest, it breaks my heart
I think we can all agree that 2020 has been a hell of a year
But, for me, it’s all about silver linings. Filling out my ballot with my daughter and involving her with every step of my process of voting at home presents a unique opportunity to dig deeper into our democracy, and make sure that my daughter understands her duties as a citizen of the United States of America.
If we want children to display values and behaviors, we as adults must model them. I’m going to make sure my daughter knows the coronavirus won’t stand in our way on election day.
