As the night wore on and the party began to wind down, Juan found himself talking with Rob Lewis. “I don’t think I’m gonna vote. I don’t even know how.”
“You’ve gotta vote,” Rob slurred his words a little and put a hand on Juan’s shoulder, “It’s your duty now. You don’t have to vote for Trump. You could vote for Biden, or anyone else you want. But you’ve got to vote. It’s the single most important thing about being an American.”
“Everybody’s got so much advice,” Juan raised his hands. "It's too much!"
“Yeah, I agree.” Rob pulled himself straighter and said with mock gravitas, “It's important to be informed and decide based on what's best for the country, not just what someone else tells you to do."
Rob leaned forward, his expression growing earnest again. "Juan, anything could happen in this next election. It’s gonna be wild! Arizona is a swing state."
“What does that mean?”
“It means that Arizona could decide the election for the whole country!” Rob raised his red solo cup in a mock toast, and then took a swig.
“Seriously?” Juan asked.
“Yes, seriously!” Rob pointed a finger at Juan, “And more than that. The Hispanic vote is up for grabs this year, so your vote could be the one that decides who the next President of the United States will be.”
“My vote?” Juan couldn’t believe his single vote would make any kind of difference in this huge country.
“That’s right!” Rob announced proudly, “Your vote, Señior Torres, may determine the direction of our country.”
Juan nodded slowly. Our country, I like the sound of that. He’d always felt disconnected from American politics, but now that he was a citizen, it seemed like something he should pay more attention to.
"I'll have to think about it some more," he said finally.
"That's all I'm asking, Juan," Rob said with a smile. "Just consider it. And if you have any questions, feel free to ask me. Just don't ask Richard. He's a grouch!"
“I won’t ask Roberto either,” Juan chuckled.
Rob patted Juan’s shoulder approvingly, “Good for you! That’s the right thing to do.”
Juan furrowed his brow. “Yeah, thank you. But I don’t know how. What do I have to do?”
"Well," Rob waggled a finger, "the first thing you gotta do is register to vote. Are you registered?"
“I don’t think so.”
“No, probably not,” Rob nodded sagely. “It’s your first day as an American. Well, no worries! Registering to vote is very simple. I know you don’t like computers, so tomorrow morning, first thing, just go on over to South Mountain Community Center. They’ve got a registration booth set up in the auditorium. You’ll have to pick between registering as a Democrat, a Republican, or an Independent.”
“What’s the difference?”
Rob cocked an eyebrow at Juan. “I could tell you who I’d vote for, but you still have to make your own decision, ok?”
Juan looked around and noticed that most of the guests had already left for the evening. “No problem. I trust you. Which one do you think I should register for?”
Which party would YOU recommend Juan Register with?
Choose Option 1: Republican
Choose Option 2: Independent
Choose Option 3: Democrat