Primary Day is almost here. How prepared are you to vote? Have you talked with the candidates and listened to their positions on the issues? Or, are you just going to vote as your friends vote, no matter who is running and hope for the best?

We sincerely hope you have researched the new candidates for election and have analyzed how those we gave our trust to the last time around have lived up to their promises and performed their duties and obligations to the people of Butler County, the state and the country.

It is your moral obligation to vote for the most suitably qualified candidates, whether they be incumbents or challengers.

We need to vote for qualified individuals who possess the ethics and moral fortitude to do what is best for all of Butler County, not those who only want to get elected to serve their own personal agenda or the agenda of special interest.

The incumbents running for re-election have had several years in office. Look at their track records.

Have they always worked towards the betterment of Butler County? Have they lived up to the promises which got them elected? Have they been there for you during their whole term or only around election time?

Do you think they have done a good job and deserve to be re-elected?

As for their challengers; have they conducted themselves in their personal and business life in a manner that is acceptable? Do they have the knowledge and background to run the business of the county? Do they have the skills and moral character that would lead them to make the hard decisions that are for the common good?

It is a hard job being an elected official. You cannot be everything to everyone. You should not base your judgment of an individual candidate solely because you could not get your way in a certain instance. You must look at the bigger picture such as, are they doing/will they do their best for the people in a fair and honest way? That is the true test of a politician’s worth.

We always hope that people with good sense will get power and that people with power will have good sense. Remember, those in power or those aspiring for power are giving you nothing but their service and they are being paid for that service. Quite simply, they are applying for a job and you are the employer. If you hire them, (vote them into office) they are there to work on your behalf and best interest. They are using your money to finance projects and make improvements. They are not reaching into their personal bank accounts to do this, they are reaching into yours! You must demand that they act responsibly and fairly on everyone's behalf, and let them know they will be held accountable for their actions if they do not.

Be an individual, be informed, and VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE on Tuesday.

You have the power to make the changes needed for our county to move forward and that power is your solitary vote, which was paid for by the blood of those who have died in our history so we can have this free democratic process.

Go vote with a friend.

Go vote as a family.

Just go vote.