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“I Voted” stickers have been available to people who voted early for Tuesday’s primary election in Carter County and across the state of Tennessee. And, we hope that come Wednesday, you can say “I Voted.”
This used to be the easiest, least controversial editorial every newspaper in America would write — the get-out-the-vote editorial.
It was very straightforward. It’s time to vote. It’s important. It is the only chance most have to really have a say in what our government does at all levels. It’s how democracy works. It was that rare editorial that nobody disagreed with. Or, if they did, no one dared say so out loud.
Not anymore.
People get all bent out of shape if you write or say something they don’t agree with. All across this nation, the whole concept of elections has become controversial, and in some places, dangerous. Utterly phony accusations and rumors of voter fraud or irregularities have metastasized into threats and acts of intimidation designed to keep people from voting or counting the votes.
Hopefully, that is not so in Carter County. But, in other parts of the country, the challenge is not only to protect the vote, but to protect the voters and the vote-counters. Never, did I think I would ever see the day that our democracy would be threatened by our own citizens.
But, I think we can rest assured that in Carter County that votes will be cast and counted in a fair and honest way.
It’s important that you vote. On the ballot this year is the race for governor, and positions to be filled in Congress, the Tennessee Legislature, and Elizabethton City Council.
This year on the ballot are four proposed constitutional amendments. They include an amendment relative to the right to work; an amendment relative to the exercise of the powers and duties of the governor during disability; an amendment to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude; and an amendment relative to disqualifications.
The right to work amendment would allow employees to opt-out of joining a union and paying the dues even if the workforce is unionized.
With union participation on the rise in Tennessee and across the country, the state’s major unions oppose the measure, arguing that if a majority of a workplace is unionized, people could opt out of paying dues, but still reap union benefits.
Meanwhile, major Republicans like Gov. Bill Lee and business interests support the amendment.
Amendment No. 2 would create a temporary line of succession if the governor is unable to perform his or her duties.
Though the lieutenant governor is technically next in line, the position also serves at Speaker of the Senate. This could conflict with a constitutional ban on a person serving simultaneously in the state’s executive and legislative branches.
Under the amendment, the Speaker of the Senate would assume the temporary duties of the governor and not be required to resign his or her seat in the General Assembly. But the Senate speaker would not be able to preside over a legislative chamber while temporarily holding the powers of the governor.
Amendment 3 aims to replace slavery language that has existed in the Tennessee Constitution for more than 150 years.
The campaign to pass the amendment has attracted widespread, bipartisan support.
Amendment 4 would remove a longstanding but unenforced ban on clergy serving in the General Assembly.
Banning religious leaders from serving in state legislatures was a larger trend as states wrote their constitutions following the American Revolution, an effort to create a clear divide between church and state.
In 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the ban was unconstitutional. It is no longer enforced, but the constitutional language has lingered. A “yes” vote on Amendment 4 would officially repeal the ban.
So, as we say: It’s time to vote. It’s important. It is the only chance most citizens have to really have a say in what our government does at all levels.
It’s how democracy works.