Early voting helps ensure that your voice is counted

Dave Everts, Las Vegas

Tuesday, May 25, 2010 | 2:01 a.m.

Regarding Jon Ralston’s Sunday column, “The folly of early voting:”

Every two years, Ralston pens a column that laments early voting. He is supposed to be a well-informed commentator on the political scene in Nevada, yet he never misses an opportunity to slam the early voting process that has made it easier for citizens to vote for more than 20 years.

Early voting makes it possible for informed voters to make certain that their vote is counted. The primary and election seasons before early voting even starts are plenty long enough for engaged voters to research the prospective candidates and choose the candidate that most closely stands for what the voter believes in.

If you are civic-minded enough to take the time to exercise your right (and duty) to vote, why not take advantage of early voting to make sure your vote is cast. In our crazy world, who knows what might happen that would prevent any one of us from making it to the polls on Election Day?

What is Ralston’s stated reason for his strong distaste of early voting? He implies that early voters are doing so in ignorance; that by voting two weeks early we might miss a last-minute bomb thrown by the chattering class that would smear a specific candidate hours before the polls open.

I believe Ralston’s attitude on this subject is arrogant and condescending to the voters of Nevada.

I will take the time to make my considered vote this week. I will not wait for Ralston and his ilk to be the deliverer of last-minute scandals of which there would be no time to effectively respond.

Make your vote count: Vote early!