By Staff
Our View
As you've no doubt noticed, we are heading into another election year.
Already, ads for various candidates are being published in the Atmore Advance, and yard signs are popping up around town.
As the date for the June 1, primaries draws near, you'll see and hear more about the men and women vying to become our elected leaders.
You can also expect to see significant coverage of the candidates and the offices they seek as the full slate of candidates is qualified over the course of the primaries, municipal elections, and the general election in November.
A tremendous amount of time, thought, money and energy will be expended on the parts of the candidates and those who support them to get their message out.
Each one believes they have the right answer for us as a community, county, state and nation.
But none of that will matter if you don't register to vote and then go to the polls to cast your vote.
America is a representative democracy, but the vitality of our system of governance relies on the participation those who are governed.
Without the full participation of the voter, fewer and fewer people will be making the decisions for the rest of us, and that direction leads us away from the freedom and democracy we enjoy and the rest of the world looks to as an example.
It's so easy to register to vote. There's really no excuse.
Postcard voter registration forms are available online at the Alabama Secretary of State Web site at http://www.sos.state.al.us
They are also available at the public library in Atmore.
It literally takes less than three minutes to fill out the form and send it in to register.
You can also look forward to seeing voter registration drives.
We applaud the members of the Zion Star AME Church for volunteering their time to hold a voter registration session March 27. The program will begin at 9 a.m. at the church, located at 127 Carver Ave. in Atmore.
These programs are important for increasing the size of our voting public, and we hope to see more as time goes by.
As our troops serve in harm's way around the world to bring democracy and a voice to those who've suffered under oppressive rule, we should, at the least, honor their sacrifice by registering to vote and voting during these important elections.