Voting is a sacred right in America, your vote is your voice, and all votes matter. In 12 days Americans will decide who will manage the country for the next 4 years, and it has never been more important to elect a president that we can trust. President Trump lies nearly every time he opens his mouth, and he has no desire to do the job.

White House officials and Trump’s personal physician Sean Conley have repeatedly dodged questions about when the president last tested negative for COVID-19. Everyone in President Trump’s circle must also lie to keep their job, so you cannot trust anyone to tell the truth. Everyone lives in an altered reality, and no one has any idea what the next blatant lie will be.

President Trump lives in a fabricated universe, and he manufactures bizarre lies for no apparent reason. Pew University estimates seniors will account for almost a quarter of the electorate. Political strategists suggest older voters are unhappy with the president’s handling of the pandemic.

This group of the electorate 65 years and older make up only 16% of the American population. But, according to Pew, they account for 80% of the more than 220,000 deaths from COVID-19. As more Americans open up their eyes and become informed voters, there is no way they can vote for Trump, when they study the facts.

Voting takes more than just putting a check mark next to the President at the top of the ballot, and having no idea of who the other candidate is, and their position on the issues. Voting takes work, and very few voters can justify why they voted for a particular candidate. With the pandemic there were very few town hall debates, and most voters will vote with no understanding of why a candidate is running for their position.

As the election season heats up, voters must vote, and they are bombarded with ads and information. Every candidate appears to be telling the truth, and in some counties the election is nonpartisan. In Orange County, Fla., certain offices and positions are non-partisan and others are partisan. In the state Judges are non-partisan and most voters have no idea of what they stand for, and which governor appointed them to their position.

It is time in America for candidates to be transparent, and tell the truth about what they have done in two years, four years or six years. Some candidates get nothing done in two years, and some are in office to see if they can generate additional income for their business.

Before any voter votes, they are strongly urged to study their ballot, and explore the issues in their community, their county, their state, and the country. Once a voter understands the issues and hot button positions that personally impact them, they are now a informed voter, who still is not ready to vote.

Now you are ready to do your homework. Start by going to the candidate’s website to see where they stand on your hot button issues. If the candidate is an incumbent, go to congress.gov and research their voting record.

As a result of COVID-19, there have been very few live campaign events with down the ballot candidates, so call candidates’ offices and share your concerns, and ask questions with their representative. Read the local newspaper, check the candidate’s answers, and make inciteful decisions based on your research and work.

“We’re not just fighting to reverse as much of the damage caused by the Trump administration as we can. We’re fighting to build something new. To do that, we have to dream big, make bold decisions. This year has made it clearer than ever that we must rapidly strengthen access to affordable and equitable health care, and intentionally dismantle the systemic inequities and biases woven into the fabric of so many of this nation’s policies and institutions,” says Dana Bunis – AARP Bulletin.