Every time before an important election, it seems as if everyone begins to support one side and shut down the other, preaching for people to head to the polls and vote for the candidate they favor, however, when election day rolls around, Texas is consistently one of the states with the lowest voter turnout statistics.

It baffles me that people who are aware that they are able to participate in making the positive change they want to see in their communities do not vote. Whether it be that people think that registering is an inconvenience, or they do not want to travel to the voting centers, only about half of Texans vote.

Although 75% of voting age Texans are registered to vote, many do not. Focusing more on the Hispanic and Latinx Americans, despite making up 34% of voting age Texans, only 24% vote.

To add more statistics, in the 2018 March Republican Primary, only 10.16% of registered voters voted, and in the 2018 March Democratic Primary, an extremely low 7.01% of registered voters went to the polls. If these numbers do not shock you, I am not sure what will.

Now, you may be wondering what you can do to help. The best thing you could do if you are over the age of 18, or will be by Nov. 6, register to vote and go to the polls. The last day to register is the day of this article’s publication, Oct. 9.

Another way that you could help is by getting people registered. Even if you are not deputized to register people to vote, you can still get in contact with voter registration centers and volunteer by block walking. Also, you could get in contact with a candidate that you support and volunteer in their campaign.

In an era like the one we live in today, where everyone seems to have a strong stance on every minor topic, opinions are more polarized than they have been since the civil rights movement, and the white house seems to be more representative of a sitcom than the epicenter of power of our country, it is beyond important to vote. Assuming you will have no effect on an election is no excuse because if the 90-93% of registered voters voted in March, I guarantee the results would be different.