On election day, I spent 11 hours at the polling place at the Campbelltown Fire Company handing out information in support of Dr. Rugh Henderson's bid to retain his seat as a South Londonderry Township supervisor. He lost the election, but he was happy with the effort and under the circumstances, did the best he could with the hand he was dealt.
It was a great day to experience American Democracy at its best. There was a steady stream of voters and as they approached, I would thrust a handout about the good doctor toward them. Almost all of them accepted the paper or politely said "no thank you". My optimistic view for the future of our nation was reinforced by seeing voters show up with the entire family. One lady came carrying a baby in one arm and holding the hand of a toddler with the other; and yet she still was willing to accept my slip of paper. I heard very few negative comments and both Republicans and Democrats at this location were visiting, discussing events of the day and generally seemed to be having a good time. I met 3 of the 4 County Commissioner candidates, ate chicken corn soup and hotdogs provided by the fine cooks of the fire company and generally felt the day went very well.
All over Lebanon County citizens were running for political office. Despite the national media's obsession with the often divisive social issues, I heard little or no talk of them in any of the local elections. It was all about what really matters---dealing with issues people genuinely care about.
There was as usual some give and take, but the rancor and bad feelings often associated with elections in other areas of our country just were not evident. The citizens of Lebanon should be proud of their efforts on Election Day 2015. Now if only the rest of the Country could do the same.
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