Q&A: Ahead of Midterms, Staff and Faculty Share Why They Vote
With key races and issues at stake in the quickly approaching midterm elections, many Michigan Ross staff and faculty have voting on their minds. By Election Day, Nov. 3, millions of Michiganders will likely have cast their votes, deciding the fate of a number of local ballot issues and selecting a new governor, U.S. senator, and U.S. representative, among others.
The University of Michigan emphasizes the importance of democracy and civic engagement and offers a variety of election-related resources to faculty, staff, and students, including two Campus Voting Hubs, where community members can register to vote, vote early, drop off an absentee ballot, or ask a peer mentor questions about voting.
But, for many, voting is about more than the logistics of showing up at a polling place on Election Day. It’s a deeply personal way to make their voices heard. Below, two members of the Ross community share why they vote.
Lori Rogala
Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education
Teaching Professor of Business Law
Why do you feel it’s important to vote?
Voting is important to me because it’s one way that my voice can be heard, and it’s essential to shaping our communities. Democracy depends on our participation. While I appreciate different people’s perspectives, I may not always agree with them. Voting is one way that I can ensure that their perspectives are not the only ones that are heard on Election Day. Even when the candidate I support isn’t elected or a proposal I favor doesn’t pass, I like to think of my vote as a reminder to elected officials that other perspectives exist. I also think it’s important to vote because so many people before us have fought for this right. Voting honors those efforts.
Can you share the story of a memorable election experience you’ve had?
The first time that I voted, I didn’t anticipate how meaningful the experience would be. I remember standing in line and catching up with neighbors and acquaintances before each person stepped into the voting booth to cast their ballot on all sorts of issues that could affect us. It was a great reminder of the importance of community and the role each of us plays in shaping it through our vote.
Shannon Beeman
Brand Manager
Office of Marketing and Communications
Why do you feel it’s important to vote?
I believe voting is one of the most meaningful ways we take responsibility for the communities we share. That responsibility extends far beyond the top of the ballot. County health departments safeguard our health and well-being. School boards impact the education of our youth. Sheriffs uphold public safety and justice. City or township planning shapes our neighborhoods and natural areas. Local decisions are often as consequential as those made at the state or federal level.
That is why I believe in voting all the way down the ballot. Every race, every office, every choice is an opportunity to say, “I am paying attention to what happens in my community and invested in its future.”
Can you share the story of a memorable election experience you’ve had?
I have a memory of being so small that I was holding onto my mother’s leg as we walked into the voting booth. I recall staring up at the red, white, and blue banners as she cast her ballot. I didn’t understand then that I was watching something I would carry with me for the rest of my life. I only knew that we were there, together, doing something that mattered.
That memory stayed with me as I grew. Eventually, I stopped holding onto my mother and started walking into the voting booth on my own. Then, decades after those first elections, I had the surreal experience of seeing my own name on a ballot when I ran for Washtenaw County commissioner.
There is something profound about that full circle. My mother was raising a child, but in those moments, she was also raising a voice. She was teaching me, long before I had the words for it, that your voice matters and using it is a responsibility.
When I think about elections, I think less about a single day and more about that inheritance. Today, I bring my own children with me, just as my mother brought me. They see me participate and begin to understand that voting is how we turn our voice into a choice.
