By
Bob Stallman
American Farm Bureau
Modern America increasingly
sports a metropolitan posture and suburban attitude, but the boulevard
to the White House and Capitol Hill still has to traverse the crop-bounded
blacktops, dusty section roads and pick-up-lined main streets of rural
America.
The upcoming election offers rural Americans an important opportunity
to make our voices heard and to ensure that our little green and gold
sections of this nation are represented to the fullest extent possible.
Like never before, the eyes of the nation are indeed on us, as candidates
target rural voters. Political scientists predict that the presidential
election could come down to a paper-thin margin in as many as 20 states
that are either in the “battleground” or “leaning
slightly” categories.
What’s
at stake?
In addition to the Office of the President, this year we will help
elect 11 state governors, 34 seats in the U.S. Senate and, of course,
the entire House of Representatives. In many of those contests, the
rural vote is the key.
Even political strategists, who in the past have been too eager to
write-off rural America as “sparsely populated,” have
taken notice this time around. It could be that they have finally
recognized what we might lack in numbers, we more than make up in
our higher levels of political participation.
Technically speaking, the rural vote added up to about one-fourth
(23 percent) of the electorate in the last presidential election.
Why we
care
The reason for our high level of political activity is simple. We
are independent business families and we have a lot at stake. While
we produce food, fiber and fuel for our nation, we also take care
of her land, forests and streams. Due to our complicated relationship
of dependence and conservancy with our nation’s land and natural
resources, we also are more likely to feel the not-so-invisible hand
of government.
The people we elect this November to lead our nation will ultimately
determine where government interaction with farm and ranch families
falls on the spectrum of cooperation and understanding. Who we choose
will help determine how taxing our immediate future might be, how
widely we might be able to sell our goods in foreign markets and how
successful our next farm program will be in helping us smooth out
the occasional economic valley.
Priming
the pump
It really is as simple as that. I am confident you will continue to
make sure your voices are heard and your votes are counted. At the
American Farm Bureau, we are priming the pump. Later this fall, we
will publish presidential candidates’ responses to questions
related to agriculture and rural America. We will do what we can to
ensure you are able to make informed decisions. Your vote will help
make rural America a force to be reckoned with.
So, the next time you see a candidate for political office scrambling
to conjure up some heartland imagery – by eating barbecue, shooting
shotguns, shucking sweet corn or milking cows – don’t
be too surprised. It is election season and, at least for this year,
rural Americans like you hold the keys to the crossroad gates.
Bob Stallman is president of American Farm Bureau Federation.
