Election Day: Voting with Your Children

Why I Take My Children to the Polls with Me

Here's the thing, it is much easier for me to vote without my children in tow. To be honest, it's much easier to do many errands without my children in tow. However, today my children will be with me at the polls.

I have taken my older daughter with me every single time I've voted since she's been born. I think it is an important lesson for her to see that no matter how cold and gloomy it is and no matter how busy I am, voting is important. I want her to know that it is every citizen's responsibility to vote and that on voting day, going to the polls takes priority over whatever other activity you want to do.

She is still too young to understand why I chose one candidate over another and I have no desire to rush her understanding of the issues. I appreciate her innocence and it is not her turn to worry about health care, war or the economy. However, at three years old, she is old enough to understand that choosing a president should be based on careful consideration and that mommy and daddy do not just go into the voting booths and randomly pick a candidate. We explain that we want to pick the best leader we can for this country and that we listen very carefully to what the candidates tell us so that we can vote for a person that we think will make good decisions.

I am proud to show her that, no matter what her own political views might be as she gets older, a woman can run a serious campaign for the presidency. I hope that it helps her set her goals high as she gets older and that it instills confidence in that fact that she can do whatever she wants to do with her life.

All that said, I will be armed with snacks, drinks, toys and books when we take our turn at the polls this afternoon. I want my girls to understand the importance of voting but I don't want to make everyone else miserable in the process. So, I prepare myself for a long wait and I entertain them the best that I can.

I hope that as the girls get older, they remember coming with me to vote and that they feel proud that I felt they were well behaved and responsible enough to accompany me. When my girls grow up, I hope that they are as proud to be an American as I am today.