We already know what the world is like with former President Donald Trump in charge. He was the president for four years. Allies abandoned and alienated. Children in cages at the border.

The national debt skyrocketed as he gifted tax cuts to the wealthy. Environmental protections were gutted. Crime increased as people acted out. The president is a role model. And a role model who advocates for violence and cruelty is a terrible and powerful influence.

“During 2020, the last year of the Trump presidency, violent crime rose dramatically. The murder rate, for example, increased by almost 30%, the largest one-year increase on record. But violent crime has been falling during the Biden presidency.” — Anna Harvey, director of the Public Safety Lab at New York University.

What can we do? It’s simple. Vote. Only about two-thirds of eligible voters actually show up. Our votes matter. We show up, we win. Kindness wins. Decency wins.

Vote for the party who will protect democracy. If our voices are taken away, we will all be silenced. Vote for the party who supports sensible gun control. The statistics are clear — the states with more gun control have less gun violence. The states who have fewer restrictions have more violence. It’s not rocket science.

Vote for the party who will protect a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions. (That would be the Democrats, by the way.)

Register to vote, and then show up. For your own sake. For everyone’s sake. You can start at: whenweallvote.org/register.

WENDY WOLF

Gearhart