In light of the recent visit to Northwest Arkansas from both Senator Marco Rubio and businessman Donald Trump, I believe it is important to address the role we can have in politics and government. I think our generation has an issue with being uninformed. To fix that, here are five ways we can develop further in our understanding of government and ultimately elect a good president.

1. Go to a rally.

I will be completely honest, before this year I thought only die-hard political nuts went to rallies. This year will be my first year to vote, along with most of the people I go to college with. In the spirit of firsts, I went to my first political rally in Little Rock to hear Marco Rubio speak. While I had heard him speak in debates, I realized how different it was to see him in person.

No longer were other, more pompous candidates interrupting him on my TV screen. I was able to get a clear understanding of his views and his personality. He was funny and quick-witted, interacting with the crowd whenever they would shout a remark about a topic.

I think it would have been beneficial for me to go see more candidates in person and get a better idea of whom I wanted to vote for in the election. So, go to a rally! Listen and observe the speaker and your surroundings to see if the candidate reflects what you think the President of the United States should be like.

It’s always fun to see someone voting for the next President of the United States and not have a clue about what he or she is doing, right? Wrong! For all the sports peeps out there, this is like when it is March Madness and there is that one kid who picks their bracket off the color of the teams’ jerseys. It’s annoying, isn’t it? You’ve given all this time to watching teams, maybe even checking the players’ stats, and here is this kid, who is competing with you that knows nothing about the game!

Now what if each of our brackets were entered into a system, and this system determined the winner based off whom more people said would win. Would you, a well-informed basketball guru, want someone filling out a bracket based off the color of jerseys? The same can be said about voting for political candidates.

There are many resources that can help you become a well-informed voter. I suggest going to each of the candidates websites to become familiar with the issues they support. Then, I would look into their past-experience and accomplishments.

After you have looked into the candidates’ opinions, form your own based on the issues. How do you feel about taxes, education, abortion, immigration, etc.? Thinking through how you personally feel about these topics will help you to better align with one of the candidates that thinks most like you do. You can find several free tests online that match your opinions with the candidates. For example, I was 99% like Donald Trump… just kidding! All jokes aside though, these tests can be eye-opening to compare your thoughts with the thoughts of the candidates. You might even surprise yourself!

Don’t forget to refer back to the constitution when comparing the opinions of yourself and the candidates. For example, maybe redistribution of wealth sounds nice to you and Bernie. However, does the federal government have the power to put his plan into action? If you are curious, I would suggest taking a closer look at the 5^th amendment. This doesn’t just apply to Sanders, but to all the candidates. I think it is important to stay true to the founding fathers in what they say in the Constitution. Their ideas of government have withstood many trials for 240 years.

4.Get involved in the community.

After you have discovered how you and the candidates feel, it’s always good to get out in your community and look for the needs and wants of those around you. A different perspective can help you to see issues in a way you had never thought of before. For example, people without any kids would benefit to hear the views of people who have kids.

There is also a greater understanding of democracy when we get involved with our community. We can see the viewpoints of others, respectfully discuss them, and understand why people’s opinions differ from our own. Together, we represent the United States of America, and we need to remember that this country should focus on our roots as a melting pot. We can have different views, but we are a nation that should stand together, not divided.

5.

Once you have reached step five, congrats! You have done your part in making sure you are making an informed vote. When you are able to vote, you will feel much more satisfied in knowing you made the best decision for you and your community. You have seen each of the candidates in person, you have done research, you have done some soul searching and comparing, and you have taken the viewpoints of others into consideration.

If everyone voted like this, imagine the difference in our government. Together, we can vote for the right leaders. Together, we can elect a good president.