Back in 1988, my second-grade teacher tried to teach the class about political elections by having us “vote” for the next U.S. president. If you can recall, that was the year Michael Dukakis ran against George Bush.

I’m sure we all know how that race turned out and boy, was I disappointed: I voted for the other guy.

My reasoning? I thought having a President named Dukakis would be pretty damn funny. Considering I had never even heard of the candidates until my teacher mentioned them, that was really all I had to go on. Forget about campaign platforms and party politics. I couldn’t even tell you the difference between a Democrat and a Republican, let alone spell them.

Then again, I was only seven.

I’d like to think my views have matured since then. At the very least, I do know the difference between a Democrat and a Republican now and I also know that there’s more to voting than liking a candidate’s last name.

Unfortunately, many people still don’t take elections seriously, either by casting ballots without being informed or not exercising their rights at all. This is a pattern that should not exist in a truly democratic society, and it is up to young people to help change it.

I bring all this up, of course, because Tuesday is Election Day. Perhaps this year’s elections are not as exciting as picking our next President, but let me assure you that there are plenty of issues worth your attention.

Like death penalty reform. Surely we remember Gov. George Ryan declaring a moratorium on the death penalty in 2000. Now he leaves office after submitting reform legislation based on recommendations set forth by the Governor’s Commission on Capital Punishment. This is a major step in the right direction, but it will be up to the next governor to carry it through. Gubernatorial candidates Jim Ryan and Rod Blagojevich have both said they plan to continue the moratorium if elected. But they also accuse each other of not taking concrete stands on the issue. Yet residents must decide who will do the most to ensure a fair system.

So why should the average NU student care about this topic? For one, Gov. Ryan based his decision in part on the work of Medill professor David Protess and his students, who found evidence that several men on death row were not guilty of their crimes. For another, capital punishment is a controversial subject. And finally, we’re not just students during our four years at NU. We’re residents. We’re affected by crime, hostile neighbors and city ordinances just like everyone else, as I’m sure most of us have noticed this quarter.

The only difference is we don’t care enough to do anything about it.

Monday’s issue of The Daily will feature an election guide as well as endorsements for governor, U.S. Senate, attorney general, U.S. House of Representatives and the Illinios House of Representatives. Instead of flipping through the pages quickly to get to the next section, I hope you’ll read up on who’s running for office.

You may be glad you did.

Assistant City Editor Naomi Kim is a Medill senior. She can be reached at [email protected].