On Tuesday, millions of Americans nationwide will go to the polls to select who will be their representatives in both Houses of Congress. They will determine if the Republicans should retain control of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
While polls are not exactly accurate, the majority of surveys said there is the possibility of a change in the House whose more than 430 seats are up for grabs. A third of the 100 Senate seats are also open.in this mid-term elections.
* * * * *It is unfortunate that only a
minority of Filipino American voters are aware of what is at stake in this
election. As far as is known, there has been no organized campaign by either
the Filipino Republicans or Democrats to educate the Filipino American voters
on how exercise their right of suffrage, to give them pointers on how to make
an intelligent selection of the candidate they should vote for. Many,
particularly the old who immigrated to the United States after having voted in
the Philippines in the past, are not given the assurance that their votes would
indeed be counted, unlike in the home country where money, gold and goons often
decided who will win the election.
* * * * *The National Federation of
Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) and other activisit groups have for
years been harping on the need for empowerment. But up to now there is no
systematic campaign to achieve this goal. There is, according to reports, no
accurate estimate of how many, among the some three million Filipino Americans,
are eligible to vote or actually cast their votes in the election. Without such
data, political parties will tend to ignore them. They will not go out of its
way to woo this sector of the population. They will continue to be ignored.
* * * * *And individual associations must
do away with following the dictates of their leaders’ political affiliations.
Instead, they should hold discussions to help their membership decide whom to
vote in the coming election.
* * * * *Go out and vote!* * * * *
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