Voting: Start with How and Why before Who

Six things to remember before casting a ballot

As I learn more about writers and writing, the people who know this craft advise the novices to identify their intended audience. It’s good advice and let’s just say I’m working on it. But in many ways, I find myself writing something primarily with myself in mind. That’s especially true for me today. I set out to write something that might be useful about the US election. Although I tried several times, I couldn’t quite find the message. So, after several attempts I asked myself what I needed to hear about this anxiety producing election. The words that follow are that message to me. I invite you to follow along in case you need to hear something like this too.

photo: element5-unsplash

1.        I am not on the ballot, and neither are my friends

I need to remind myself that I can’t vote for myself. I’m pretty sure I don’t want to run for public office- even if some of the work sounds interesting - I really wouldn’t want to put myself through what it takes to get the job. So, by choosing a candidate to support I have to pick someone who isn’t me.  That seems obvious, but it’s important to remind myself that my opinions are not a perfect match to whichever candidate I choose. And my friends are also not on the ballot. They aren’t likely to line up perfectly with their choice of candidate either.

2.        Defending a bad idea just because my candidate holds it is a bad idea

Choosing a candidate is like shopping for a new car. Early in the process we research various models, compare features and look for the best match to our needs. As long as we’re shopping, we are pretty open to which features we like and which we don’t. But once we make a choice and buy the car, a thing called the Endowment Effect kicks in. This principle leads us to assign greater worth to something we own than to what we are simply considering.

Once I choose a candidate to support, I’m tempted to fall victim to the endowment effect.  After I prioritize the criteria that I will use to choose my candidate – more on this process next - it is very likely that I will begin to “agree” with any and everything my candidate says. Even worse, I am likely to contort my opinions to defend these statements and essentially forget that they are not in line with who I am or how I want to live my life.

3.        There’s tons of stuff to consider – I’ll have to choose what matters most

Since I’m not on the ballot and my candidate doesn’t match every one of my opinions, I have to choose what to prioritize in order to vote. There are probably as many ways to prioritize as there are people, but common themes emerge. We often choose our candidate by:

•    Political Party- especially if my family has always voted for that party

• One or more positions or policies I like

•     A personal characteristic I like about a candidate

•     One or more positions or policies of the other candidate that I don’t like

•     A personal characteristic of the other candidate that I don’t like

•     Peer pressure

•     Group identity

For those of us that seek to fully live out our faith, we’re likely to understand that casting our vote is a sacred responsibility. But prioritizing faith does not guarantee either an easy or a predictable choice in a complex election when lots of stuff is on the ballot. In each of the US elections in my lifetime, all the candidates from each of the major parties advocated for some kind of Biblical principle.  Unfortunately, unbiblical principles were also represented by each of these candidates. So how can we decide who to vote for? Prayerfully and thoughtfully. This does not mean that living faith fully at the ballot box will lead each believer to the same conclusion.

4.        My choice matters

So, if voting prayerfully is important but won’t necessarily lead to the same decision, does it matter that I vote, or how I vote?

Yes. I have one voice and the responsibility to bring my experience and perspective, guided by faith, to the ballot box. It’s not the only way, or even the most significant way for me to lift up my neighbors and community, but it is one step that I can take.

5.        There’s a lot more going on than just an election

In chapter five of the gospel of John, the religious leaders accused Jesus of disrespecting their faith by the way he ministered. They were confident that their policies specified God’s work, confining it to a specific time in a specific way.

If we’re not careful, our politics may tempt us to believe that God’s work can only succeed if the right people are chosen to do the right stuff in the right way at the right time. Jesus responded to his critics by saying “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working”.  God is indeed always working, no matter the systems we create. We partner with him by loving, praying, serving, and occasionally by voting. But there is always a lot more going on.

6.        Higher principles can unite us

In I Corinthians chapter three the apostle Paul admonished his hearers to overcome loyalty to their preferred leader and recognize the central focus of their faith. Much of the Bible’s New Testament focuses on the hard work of interweaving more than one culture around unifying principles. These first century believers needed the reminder to work together despite their differences and so do we.

I am reminded of this process by a prayer that my brother, Jerry Kester, brought to the Washington State Legislature in March of 2023. He offered an invocation for God’s guidance as the legislators fulfilled their responsibilities to serve. I share it here to remind myself that as I vote I want to hold my own convictions securely as I also listen to and learn from my neighbors and friends.

Oh God,

We pause and quiet our hearts at the beginning of what will be a busy day. There is much to discuss there is much to decide. I pray for those gathered in this place where decisions are made that affect the lives of us all. I ask that they with humble hearts may be filled with wisdom to rightly decide the issues before them. We do not ask that they agree on everything, making this body unnecessary, but that they work together to promote justice and peace for the citizens of our state. Where they cannot find harmony, we pray that they would govern with charity. Free them from the tendency to confess other people’s sins and grant them the clarity for the conditions of their own hearts when they do not see eye to eye, to help them to walk hand in hand so that we who follow them may have our lives enriched by their collective influence and the legislation they enact. Help them today to exercise their responsibility to the citizens who elected them. Remind them that we are all ultimately responsible to you.

 May it Be So