A Right Not to Be Frittered Away : Often, the outcomes of major issues hang on a handful of voters

There’s nothing like a close election to bring home the fact that every vote really does count. In Los Angeles County there were two dramatic examples last week that illustrate the point.

In the Westside’s 23rd state Senate Democratic primary election, a mere 227 votes appear to separate Assemblyman Tom Hayden and Sen. Herschel Rosenthal. Some absentee ballots have yet to be counted. But assuming the margin continues to be tiny, victory will hinge not on some massive block of voters but on individuals who bothered to make that quick stop at the polling place to cast a vote. In a nation that has come to take voting for granted, few ever think that his or her vote may really make the difference. But each election gives us new examples that prove that assumption wrong.

In Superior Court Office No. 17., Judge Joyce Karlin was facing reelection. Her decision to grant probation to a Korean-born grocer in the killing of a black teen-ager disturbed many, especially in the black community. In her reelection campaign Karlin defended her sentence and cited the importance of judicial independence. When all was said and done, her razor-thin margin of victory, just barely more than the required 50% plus one, was attributable in part to low registration and turnout in black neighborhoods.

“The people who are really upset are so disillusioned--they don’t even want to take the time to vote,” said one African-American 22-year-old who did not vote. “The system never works for us. Look what happened to Rodney King. . . . “

It’s true that sometimes the system disappoints. But it is the only system Americans have. And failing to vote only ensures that complaints about “the system” become self-fulfilling prophecy. If you vote, there’s no guarantee that the issue or person you vote for will win. But if you don’t vote, you lose for sure.