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Elections are important for Politicians because there are one of two outcomes to each election. They know they can lose and that's why you see them pushing themselves beyond boundaries just to make sure they come out victorious. For those of them that are desperate to come out victorious, what they are capable of doing will surely be beyond the stretch of your imagination.

As for Citizens in a sane society, regardless of how desperate they want an aspirant to win in any election, the most they can do to help their candidate is to cast their vote during an election. Interestingly, you are not the only one coming to cast your vote. So many other people are also there to vote and when collation is done, you can still be on the losing end, but that's democracy.

> Think about this... Do you know what I've always loved about the Democratic approach to elections?

It's the fact that you don't have to go and cast your vote. Fundamentally, democracy gives everyone a voice to act as they want, as far as it doesn't involve breaking laws. This implies that people are also not compelled to participate in elections. You are advised and encouraged to be part of it, but if it so pleases you, you can choose to sit at home and keep your vote to yourself. 

This fact which I consider to be fairly obvious seems to have finally gotten into people's ears as can be deduced from the turnout in the gubernatorial election that was held in Nigeria on 18th March 2023. Our Presidential election was held on 25th February, and the build-up to that election was very intense. Anyone within and outside the country would have imagined that even a newborn would be forced to vote on the said election date. 

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I can still recall attending a conference before the presidential election where people were being guilt-tripped for saying that they won't be participating in the election. It wasn't even funny. Anyone that showed disinterest in the election got treated like the public enemy. 

Long story short... The election came and voters got their hearts shattered. Many people lost their lives because they participated in that Presidential election. A lot more got injured, but the saddest part of it was the outcome of the election. There are still claims that the election got rigged. 

'Claims', I said.

After passing through all that, how many people would you still expect to turn up for another election 3 weeks later? 

For the record, a lot of people participated in the gubernatorial election that was held over the weekend, but there is a noticeable drop in the participation rate. The build-up to that also didn't seem as loud as the former. Those that were bent on guilt-tripping others for their decision not to participate in elections didn't do much of that. 

I guess the whole democratic era lifestyle is sinking in. It's all up to you. Vote if you want and sit your ass at home if you don't want to vote. Don't allow anyone to talk you into participating in an election. For anyone interested in being part of it, do not allow anyone to talk you out of it.

**Thanks For Not Missing Any Full-stop Or Comma**
<sub>Thumbnail Image is taken from [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/nl/photos/bescherming-handen-beschermen-450595/)
Additional Image is taken from [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/nl/photos/lezen-boek-boeken-relax-gras-tuin-1702616/)</sub>