Governor Wes Moore and Mayor Brandon Scott speak at Morgan State on Election Day

By Ariyana Griffin
AFRO Staff Writer
agriffin@afro.com

Maryland Governor Wes Moore and Baltimore City Mayor Brandon M. Scott met up on the campus of Morgan State University (MSU) on Nov. 5th. The pair urged students to exercise their right to vote. They emphasized the importance of their vote, not only in deciding the next President of the United States but also in several other elections, including the candidacy of Angela Alsobrooks, Maryland’s Democratic Senate candidate. 

Students, faculty, staff and community members filed into the MSU student center to hear from the leaders. 

Gov. Moore spoke to the importance of voting– even for those who may feel like their vote does not matter.

“Democracy is our helium– we didn’t invent it, we didn’t discover it – we were born into it,” he said. “It is our job to make sure it is protected, and the way that we do that is by making sure that we are active participants in that democracy.”

For people who feel like they do not want to get into politics, Gov. Moore explained that policies and politics affect everyday life. 

“Everything in your life is a policy decision–the air you are breathing is a policy decision, the water you drink is a policy decision, the homes that we live in are policy decisions – the people who sit in these seats matter,” Moore said. “They are not just making decisions for now, they are making decisions for the future. It’s important that we get out there and we make our choices heard and it’s important that we do it up and down the ballot.”

Layla Hartley, a 21-year-old psychology major, shared that this election was too crucial for her not to get up and vote, especially with this being her first time having eligibility to use her voice.

“It was important for me to vote because in history, not everyone has a voice to vote,” said Hartley, a Baltimore native. “I feel lying in bed while I have a chance and opportunity to vote would be wrong for me to do that. This election that’s coming up has a lot of things in my life that will be in danger if I do not vote. So I can’t just lie around and not take this seriously. 

Mayor Scott spoke about the importance of voting and said he was happy to do his part in motivating and inspiring people to vote and use their voices.

“Too many people have lived, fought and died for you to be alive at such a time like this for you to stay on the sidelines,” said Scott. “Thank you all for being out here today and thank you for understanding the importance of voting.

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