Med Students – Are You a Registered Voter?
It’s been a wild July. And it’s not because of the stress of moving between years in med school, starting rotations or any of the typical stuff. Many of us have felt alone or isolated, frustrated/angry or even apathetic about the upcoming election. And yet, now the conversation has shifted from apathy to renewed excitement about the Democratic Candidate for President! And, I know – I know you’re busy. Medical school is hard, time consuming, soul draining and sleep depriving. Remembering to vote? To register? Not the top of your list. And yet, as a famous old dude once said:
“We do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” – Thomas Jefferson
Did you know physicians are less likely to vote than the general public? Particularly in states like California, Texas and New York?!?
So I’m here to remind you… your vote? IT MATTERS. No matter what you may hear, EVERY VOTE is of value. I grew up in a state that always voted the same way… until the last Presidential election. When more of us who are passionate about our patients, our communities and our world take the time to vote, we can change the world we live in. We can make it better. And we are NOT alone.
Fine. I’ll Vote. But… how do I know if I can?
- Make sure you’re registered to vote. You can check by clicking this link via VotER (a non-partisan group dedicated to Getting Everyone to VOTE: https://get.vot-er.org/?referral=fmstudent)
- If you’re not in your home state BE SURE you set up your vote by mail ballot to come where you’ll be in October. Tricky for 4th years who may be doing audtions/away rotations, so plan ahead. If you can’t be sure of where you’ll be, can you get it mailed it to your local address or even the school and get it sent to you? Worst you’ll find out is no.
- Come back on Monday for a post about how you can help patients, hospital staff, neighbors, friends and family check their own registration status!
References
Docs vote less – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8749472/#:~:text=Physicians%20and%20nonphysicians%20differed%20in,001, https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2787772, https://www.jwatch.org/fw117156/2020/10/22/physicians-less-likely-vote-others-3-state-study-finds).
Check your registration – https://get.vot-er.org/?referral=fmstudent
Federal info on voting by mail – https://www.usa.gov/absentee-voting
Vote.org’s absentee ballot info – https://www.vote.org/absentee-ballot/
