Pittsboro, NC – Thank you to all the citizens of Chatham County who exercised the most fundamental responsibility of citizenship: voting in an election to select people to represent us at the local, state, and federal levels of government. In a Representative Republic, selecting leaders is critical to shaping the direction of the country, guiding the economy, spending tax money wisely, protecting the environment, and educating our children.
It is important to remember a very important point as we embark on this next stage in our journey: contrary to what some national leaders loudly proclaimed in this last election, we do not live in a Democracy.
If our system of government was a Democracy, every citizen would directly vote on every issue, and the majority view would prevail. Quite obviously this would not work with a population of over 300 million in the entire country. It wouldn’t work even here in Chatham County with a population of around 85,000.
Our form of government is a Representative Republic. Our Federal and NC Constitutions govern our process of selecting both representatives and our President, Vice President and NC state offices. Included in each document are safe-guards to protect the rights of the minority while facilitating the process of government by the will of “The People”.
Remember these facts when leaders of both parties proclaim the loss of our Democracy if the other party should win.
Disingenuous claims like these are proven false each election when the “Will of The People” is expressed when we fairly and honestly select the people to represent us at all levels of government. And “The People” have the right, in regularly scheduled elections protected by law, to re-elect or vote out representatives who fail in their duty to the people and to the law.
Thanks to all voters, thanks to the passionate representatives in 1789 who crafted the U.S. Constitution and to the people in each state who insisted on the first ten amendments to guard our rights, and thanks to the process that brought amendments that further clarified and insured that these rights extended to all.
May blessings continue for the United States, and for its citizens.