For You so Called Undecided, How to Choose the Best Candidate for You

The great president John F Kennedy once said that "The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all." This quote resonates so well with what is going on in this 2008 election as many people are claiming to be "undecided." This article is to get you to make up your mind, because you are endangering the security of those who have educated themselves well enough to make up their mind. If you need help deciding how to pick your candidate, read on and please after following the steps, make a choice or forfeit your civic duty rather than clogging the lines on Election Day, only to vote without really knowing why you picked your candidate.

Before you decide who to vote for on November 4^th, it is a good idea to first sit down and write out your concerns. What are the issues that are important to you? Using a T-chart, make a list of these issues on one side of the chart and jot down how you feel abouteach issue on the other side of the chart. After jotting down your interests, it is time you do a research on the candidates. And believe me, there are plenty of information out there.

The reason you do research on candidates is to see how you relate to them in terms of your every day bottom line. Visit the website of each candidate to see what they said about the issues that are important to you. Take notes and compare the notes to the list you had made. This is your second T-chart. Doing this research is helpful because it keeps you from using only the one-sided or biased views we get from media such as television stations and blogging sites. You want to get a wealth of information from various sources. Sites such as www.votechooser.com allow you to take a short quiz that will help you narrow your candidate. Another great site is www.issue2008.com where you can see where the candidates stand on the issues. The website www.factcheck.org will help you get all the information checked for accuracy, and www.vote-smart.org has information on candidates on anything you can possibly think of, including speeches and voting records.

Now that you have all the ammunition you need to dissect the candidates, you can now bring back your own notes(the first t-chart)to once again compare it to what you have found from your researching. When you have finished, you should now be ready to make your decision on which candidate to vote for.

It is not enough that we go to the polling station on November 4^th and vote, although you are commended for participating in this civic duty. To be an effective citizen who truly makes a difference, you need to educate yourself on the candidates by deciding what issues are important to you, by learning all you can through the candidates' and third party sites.

This may have been a time consuming task. But trust me, when you are done with this exercise in civic responsibility, you will be glad you did. Plus, you will be doubly rewarded when you help select the right candidate who will steer the country in the right direction. Vote smart and vote responsibly! Many shed their blood so that we can get this opportunity. Don't blow it!

Sources

www.vote-smart.org

www.barackobama.com

www.johnmccain.com