While everyone should exercise their right to vote, it doesn’t mean they should go into the polling places without knowing anything about whom or what they are voting for.

Citizens of this country should be informed so they can make a sound decision when deciding who they think should run the United States. Voting for president isn’t a decision to be taken lightly – the next four years of your life will be influenced by whomever is in the Oval Office.

So, don’t walk into the voting booth Nov. 2 without doing some research first.

Hopefully, voters watched the presidential debates so they could see for themselves where John Kerry and George W. Bush stand on the issues – and how the candidates deal with the pressure of being in the spotlight.

But if you overlooked the debates in favor of the new prime-time lineup, don’t despair – there are other ways of getting to know the candidates.

Pick up the Northern Star and read other papers like the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times and The New York Times to see which candidates the media are endorsing and why. Read newsmagazines and turn on the nightly newscasts. Doing any of these things will give you the background necessary to make an informed decision.

Don’t forget about the Internet, either. Countless searchable articles on the Web make researching the 2004 elections even easier. The Internet connects you to candidates’ campaign Web sites and government sites that also can be helpful in understanding the election process.

The 2000 presidential election proved that every vote does count, even though some may think their votes don’t matter.

Although Illinois is not a “battleground” state, it still has 21 electoral votes – coming only after California with 55 votes, Texas with 34, New York with 31 and Florida with 27 (Illinois ties with Pennsylvania, which also has 21).

Voting is the only way for your voice truly to be heard in this election. And informed voting results in better decisions and better leadership for our country.

One of the best things about the United States is that it is a democratic society, and democracy starts with voting. It starts with you.