Out of many, one

E Pluribus Unum

The great American motto. Found on coinage, the Great Seal of the United States, and elsewhere. I find myself reflecting upon the meaning of this phrase every time I turn out to vote.

Shortly after polls opened yesterday, I filed into my local polling station - Sandy Elementary School - to add my one voice to the many voices in the state of Utah, to announce my preference for the next President of the United States.

I voted for Barack Obama.

I have various reasons for this selection - some good, some maybe not quite as good - but ultimately the reason I voted for Obama is that I wanted my vote to count.

Romney was going to run away with the winner-take-all Utah Republican vote (and he did) so voting Republican was an exercise in futility, one way or the other.

On the other hand, the Democratic race looked like it might be close - both locally and nationally - and I wanted to do my part to give Barack the advantage.

So I checked the block three times, and cast my vote.

Apparently 70,372 other people decided they thought Obama was worth the hassle of voting for, too.

Out of many, I was one.

It's amazing, really. I could have chosen not to turn out. I could have chosen just to head to work, just to get on with my day and let the unknown "many" make my decision for me.

Then again, so could have all of those other seventy-plus thousand Utahns. But we banded together, and drew strength from each other. Collectively, our individual voices mattered, and the cause of democracy was furthered.