Why this election matters

As a young voter, this election is an opportunity to elect candidates close to the issues that matter to me

by YESENIA SCEARCY
October 29, 2024

In 2008 when President Obama was elected I was in kindergarten. While I was trick-or-treating I would tell my neighbors, “Vote for Obama!” This may have just been a cute thing to do, but even as a young girl I knew how impactful it was to see a president that wasn’t just another “old white guy.” Now, when I vote in this year’s election, I will be 22 years old, finishing my last year in college. I have the same understanding of how impactful this election will be as I did in kindergarten. Except this time I am hoping to see the first Black woman run this country.

Growing up, I have always been very outspoken and aware when it came to social issues and politics. In 2016 I was in 8th grade and I cried out of fear when the election results were released. I laid in bed with my mom comforting me as I told her I would have no future and no chance to be successful because I heard all the nasty things the president would say about people like me. The next day I wore a shirt to school that said “A woman’s place is in the White House,” and I still have it. Back then it didn’t mean as much as it does today for this election.

Watching a woman of color kill it at a presidential debate was fascinating to me. That was the moment it really sank in for me that I have never seen a presidential candidate that carries as much proximity to issues that matter to me as Kamala Harris. She cares about reproductive rights, she’s been the deciding vote on pro-worker legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act or a key vote to save union workers’ pensions, and she models what respectful leadership looks like. I think many men may not realize how amazing it is for some of us to see Kamala Harris on that stage bringing representation because they have always seen men in those roles. It gets me excited that I might be able to say that I’ve lived to see a woman president because I never really thought it could happen.

Yesenia as a young girl, with her father, John Scearcy, a long-time Teamster and labor leader. Like many folks in Washington’s labor movement, Yesenia was inspired by her father to see organized labor’s promise for building worker power. 

I tend to look at politics as a game because I know the system is flawed in many ways, but in order to fix it you have to work within the system. So regardless how many people tell me my vote doesn’t matter, I’m going to vote because I know folks struggled before me to earn my right to participate.

Kamala Harris is not perfect and I struggle with some of her positions. But this election isn’t a decision on who is perfect, it’s a decision on who will be the president that we can trust, who can be a leader built on unity, and who will consider the impacts of their actions on everyday, working people. We already lived under the Trump administration and it was chaotic. I don’t want to relive the times I heard him spread xenophobic, sexist, homophobic, ableist, and racist rhetoric across our communities. I want to see the working class come together under our shared identity as workers, thrive from solidarity, and care for each other as neighbors do.

A lot is on the line on November 5th and I don’t want to cry out of fear again because my rights may be stripped away. I don’t want to live in a world with so much hatred, where folks can’t get along based on politics. I want to see us continue to make progress as a country, not go backwards. Beyond the presidential election, there is so much on the ballot in Washington this year that will impact working people. Working people need to have a say, too. That is why voting for Kamala Harris – and pro-worker candidates all down the ballot – matters so much to me this election.

Yesenia Scearcy is one of two Political & Communications interns at the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO during the 2024 Election cycle. Along with her other duties, she helps lead the WSLC’s Labor Neighbor program to get out the union vote.