Why I Cannot Respect Choosing To Vote For Trump

As Americans, we have the luxury of living in a country where we get to vote for our leaders. Unlike many countries, we have a representative government, and gerrymandering and other shady tactics notwithstanding, we have the privilege of choosing who we cast our votes for. This was a truly revolutionary system when our founders created it 244 years ago, and it has generally served us well. Despite its flaws, it has been a model to countless countries around the world, and I am deeply thankful that we have such a system.

Like most Americans, I cherish being able to go to my polling station to cast my vote, to the point of considering it a moral obligation. I have the freedom to vote for whichever candidates and issues I want, which is something I truly treasure. Part of exercising this right, however, is respecting that not everyone will vote the same way you do. We have a fantastically diverse country, and a wide array of political ideologies is naturally present. I gladly respect peoples’ right to vote for candidates and issues I disagree with, even when my opposition is vehement.