Local elections will soon be upon us. Once again, issues, as well as candidates, will rise and fall. It is important that everyone who is qualified to vote, gets out and does so.

One of our enduring rights is to vote. We have possessed this right for so long that we tend to lose sight of its meaning. Indeed, we have manufactured a litany of excuses designed to exempt us from voting. These are so common they have assumed stereotypical patterns. It is worthy to note, however, that local elections poll the lowest turnout for the three subdivisions: national, state and local.

Overall, people say they don't vote because they don't feel a part of the “political process.” Voting, however, carries with it the presumption of responsibility. As one of rights, it must be nourished from time to time at the polls. It demands that people study the issues. Today, so many outlets to study the issues accrue to the consumer that one should be able to identify a slate of candidates as readily as one would review the weekly supermarket bargains.

Voting demands an informed electorate, and one may become informed relatively easily from the safety and comfort of one's own home, given the ready access to today's accelerated forms of communication. Interestingly, the more one becomes informed, that person feels a part of the “political process.”

Ironically, people 50 to 60 years ago, in an era devoid of many forms of telecommunications, voted in proportionately greater numbers than they do nowadays. This observation suggests that we may have relinquished our responsibility to vote intelligently. It may also suggest that we are confronted by more complex issues than our predecessors.

Undoubtedly, there is merit to either observation. As citizens, it is our duty to become informed on the issues. It is fitting to note that government, seen as a wheel, is only as effective as we, the spokes.

Local elections provide unlimited opportunity to participate in our representative democracy.

Local elections are inextricable related to greater, national issues.

The local scene is essentially an arena providing instant feedback to volunteers in the form of satisfaction for a job well done. How often do people receive similar accolades at work?

Here, on the grassroots level, one is free to choose a level of participation, from tacit gestures like handing out brochures and planting campaign signs to making phone calls and stumping for candidates.

Over the years, many significant issues of national importance have rested on a single ballot cast by someone at the local level who joined forces with others to cast the deciding vote.

Get out and vote and become a part of the process. It is a rewarding experience.

Fogarty writes from Auburn