As we all know, a general election is coming up on November 3. It is very important for our community to participate in elections. Not only do elections determine the policies and direction of our city, county, state, and country; they also show our politicians that we care enough to vote, prompting them to pay more attention to our community. It is also vital to show hakaras hatov (gratitude) to those elected officials who have helped us in the past and whose actions and words show that they will be there for us in the future.

The offices we are voting for this year are U.S. president/vice president, congressional representatives (but not senators), and court judges. The City is also voting for mayor, City council president, comptroller, and City council members. In October, registered voters will receive a sample ballot in the mail with the entire list. (The deadline for registering is October 13.)

Because of the risks of Corona, our government officials have provided additional options for voting this year. The options are to vote in person or by mail-in ballot.