Reminder: This Weekend is a Really Good Time to Vote

We know two things: first, is that primary elections are important for narrowing down candidate fields and making decisions. And second, that a lot of people opt not to vote in the primaries because they don't care about that first thing.

But please--don't be one of those people. If you can vote, you must vote--it's one of your most crucial rights as an American, and you'd be remiss not to put it to use. Also, there's some really important stuff on this ballot (like the tunnel). And if you don't vote, you don't get to complain about the results. And we know how much you like to complain.

In case you haven't been following along, here's a roundup of the topics in your ballot that we've covered. So this weekend, why not curl up with your Voters' Pamphlet, this information, and your ballot, and cast your vote.

Measures:
Proposition 1: This proposition will renew an existing levy that funds veteran's affairs programs, as well as programs for at-risk youth, low-income families, and the homeless. It currently costs the average King County homeowner about $17 per year to keep this levy in place, and funds dozens of critical organizations for those in need. Reject it if you don't mind the shelters closing, and veterans going without care.

Referendum 1: This is the tunnel-decider vote, which many, many people worked very hard, to get into the hands of the people. Voting "approve" means that you want to move forward with the tunnel, while voting "reject" means that you'd prefer if we reconsidered this hole deep-bored situation.

City Council:

Your vote here will help narrow both of these fields down to just two candidates apiece.

For Position 1, your choices are incumbent Jean Godden, Bobby Forch, Michael Taylor-Judd, or Maurice Classen.

For Position 9, your choices are incumbent Sally Clark, Dian Ferguson, or Fathi Karshi

School Board:

There are 4 spots opening up on the school board this year, and each currently have 3-5 hopefuls. Your primary vote helps determine which 2 will be on the November ballot. In the primaries, you only vote within your district, but in the fall, you'll vote on each position.

The positions that are open are 1, 2, 3 and 6, and each have multiple qualified candidates.

County Council:

County Council presents 2 spots opening up this year: one of which represents West Seattle, Vashon/Maury Islands, Burien, SoDo, International District/Chinatown, Pioneer Square and portions of SeaTac (district 8), and the other representing Bellevue and other parts of the Eastside (district 6).

County Council has gotten a lot of attention during the past few weeks, regarding the decision to pass a $20 car tab fee, reminding us all that our votes in this matter has real potential to impact the lives of many.

The deadline is Tuesday. Don't put it off any longer.