OK. I'll admit it. I am a political junkie.
Even in an era when more and more people are tuning out of politics and choosing not to vote, I still get a visceral thrill from observing the political process.
And it鈥檚 driven by more than just my job as a journalist.
It鈥檚 an extension of my fascination with how things work (and when they don鈥檛, trying to figure out why they're not working.)
I probably owe this to an experience I had on one of my first trips to the ballot box.
I remember going to the polling station in the old firehouse near where I lived in suburban Louisville, Ky. As I pulled the mechanical levers (yes, this was a few decades ago), the top of the ticket was pretty easy. But the further down the ballot I got, the less I knew about the choices I was being asked to make.
Then I got to the candidates for Kentucky Railroad Commissioner.
"What the heck?" I thought it. Maybe I even said it out loud.
I was young. I felt proud of making the effort to vote. But I hadn't counted on being responsible for determining the fate of Kentucky's railroads.
I finally resorted to eeny, meeny, miny, moe.
I pulled a lever and moved on. After all, it was better than not putting in a choice, right? I think I voted moe, but meeny won.
Next time, I vowed, I would be better prepared.
And I have been more informed ever since, looking at sample ballots ahead of Election Day and doing my homework.
But I have a hunch you鈥檝e run into the same voting roadblocks that I have.
Over time, it has become harder and harder to find unbiased and clear information about the candidates and the issues, especially the further down the ballot you go.
I鈥檝e valued the opportunities I've had as a journalist in being able to go directly to the source to find out more.
I love engaging with people and getting the opportunity to have conversations with candidates all across the political spectrum. It鈥檚 not about whether I agree with them. It鈥檚 about understanding what brought them to their point of view and considering their perspectives and reasoning.
And part of my job is to share that understanding (not to mention my passion for the process) so hopefully you, too, will feel that sense of engagement and the value and importance of the choice you make in your participation.
Every vote counts. Every choice is important.
It鈥檚 only April. Is it too soon to be thinking about this? I don鈥檛 think so.
Early voting started on Tuesday for the May 5 primary election.
In 2026, here鈥檚 a taste at what鈥檚 at stake for everyone:
- A U.S. Senate seat
- Your representative in the U.S. House
- Ohio Governor and Lt. Governor
- Ohio Secretary of State
- Ohio Attorney general
- Ohio Auditor
- Ohio Treasurer
- Ohio Supreme Court justices
- Representatives in the Ohio General Assembly
And beyond that, there will be local races and questions about funding the services important to you like schools, libraries and emergency services.
That鈥檚 a lot to consider. How can you be informed?
Our commitment to you at 精东影业 is to make sure we鈥檙e getting you the information you need to make informed choices when you go to the polls.
(Notice that I said 鈥渨hen,鈥� not 鈥渋f!鈥� I am eternally optimistic.)
And we鈥檙e going to up our game this election year including a more comprehensive voter guide that will help you feel confident in the decisions you make in contested November races that don鈥檛 always get the attention they deserve. There's no one running for railroad commissioner, but there are plenty of other races that qualify.
Most critically, we want to meet you where you are. We want to hear from you about the questions you have about who and what鈥檚 on the ballot. Our coverage is branded "Listen, Engage, Vote 2026." And the first word is listen. So talk to us, please!
You can call us or text us at the same number, 216-916-6090, send us a message through the Talk To Us section on the 精东影业 app or email us at TalkToUs@ideastream.org.
We鈥檒l do our best to ensure that when you go to flip the levers 鈥� er, fill in the bubbles 鈥� in 2026, you don鈥檛 feel like you're playing a game of eeny, meeny, miny, moe.
"The Cut" is featured in 精东影业's weekly newsletter, The Frequency Week in Review. To get The Frequency Week in Review, The Daily Frequency or any of our newsletters, sign up on 精东影业's newsletter subscription page.
