Does ‘Local’ Mean Unimportant?

The spotty voting record of Republican vice presidential candidate Dick Cheney mirrors the apathetic habits of many voters. Fewer than half of eligible adults bothered to go to the polls in the 1996 presidential election. Turnout plummets further in local elections, the sort that Cheney most frequently missed in Texas. Many voters skip such contests, but the bar should be higher for political candidates.

Cheney, then head of Halliburton Co., a huge oil services and energy firm, failed to vote in 14 of 16 elections, including the March 2000 presidential primary, during the five years he was registered in Dallas County, according to news reports first published in the Dallas Morning News. He cited extensive business travel, often overseas, as a reason for missing so many elections. The availability of absentee ballots makes that excuse unpersuasive.

Though he voted in every general presidential election, Cheney skipped school board races and a school bond issue; he cited his lack of interest in local issues. Doesn’t he know that education is a top priority for most voters? Those contests are gaining in importance as Texas and other states scramble to improve public education.

Cheney isn’t the only major candidate of recent years who failed to vote. During the 1998 California gubernatorial race, for example, Democratic businessman Al Checchi was forced to admit that he had never voted in a state gubernatorial race. Checchi, who lost in the primary, also cited his business travel.

Cheney’s imperfect voting record matters less than his dismissive response: “An awful lot” of the votes he skipped were just about “local issues.” In a presidential election in which the candidates often sound like they’re running for governor or school board, Cheney had better hope voters have a higher regard for “local issues” than he does.