Wyoming Politics

Though I'm sure everyone is sick of politics by now, in honor of election day I decided to write about what politics are like here in Wyoming.

Wyoming is definitely a completely different world from Ohio when it comes to politics. For one, Wyoming is a solid red state. No swinging here. I must say, that is one nice thing about not living in Ohio this election season; I have observed minimal campaign commercials (although being able to watch TV only via the internet and therefore not being forced to watch commercials at all might also have something to do with that). But it is especially odd for me having spent most of my time surrounded by moderate to liberal peers and having lived in a fairly liberal college town, now being thrust into a completely different political climate. Here in Wyoming, almost everyone votes Republican. As an avid Obama supporter, the past few months have been pretty hard on me politically. But out here, politics are completely different altogether. It almost makes sense to me that so many people identify with the Republican party, because Wyoming just faces different issues altogether.

For example, back in August I attended a political gathering with a coworker, which was basically a party for someone who was running for office. During the event, there were multiple speakers who talked about the issues they were running on. One issue that was mentioned was "Meatless Mondays," which apparently is an initiative started by Congress to limit the amount of meat allowed to be produced on Mondays, in order to cut back on toxic emissions and focus on healthier foods other than meats. Now normally, this would sound like a great idea to me because it leads to better environmental and health benefits. However, the speaker reminded us that with cows being the number one product in Wyoming, a Meatless Monday would be extremely hurtful to the economy. I had definitely never thought about that before living here.

Another thing about Wyoming politics is that the social issues that I personally am very passionate about - i.e. women's rights, LGBT rights, rights of people of minority races and ethnicities, religious freedoms, etc. - don't play as big of a role. Wyoming is a state made up of predominately white, Christian, heterosexual families. Not to mention it is the least populated state in the country. These issues of diversity don't weigh as much as other issues (such as the economy and healthcare) because there simply is not a multitude of diversity here. It's just interesting to think about these things, especially as a liberal Ohioan.

So I did vote absentee because I know as an Ohioan my vote really does have a bigger impact than voting in Wyoming would. And though I am a pretty hardcore Obama fan, I do not disrespect people who don't agree with my views. I think the important thing is to vote, no matter who you vote for. Obviously, I think it would be lovely if everyone would vote for the person who is not just trying to solve economic issues, but also human rights issues, but I think at this point people aren't really going to be easily persuaded by my opinion. All that really matters is that you exercise your fundamental right as a United States citizen to elect the people that you feel will make the best decisions for our country. So many people fought for your right to vote. Don't waste it.

Happy Election Day!