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Henry Yao |
2. Be an educated voter. To further reinforce a person's effectiveness of their vote, it is important for them to be educated before they vote. Learn about the candidates' character, explore their policies and action plans, and understand current issues.
Henry's DrawMyLife
Henry would like to remind
everyone about the importance of civic engagement and participation in
democratic processes. Please take 3 minutes out of your day to watch the video.
It is summarized in the following 5 points:
1. It is extremely important for
everyone to vote. Policy makers know voters' demographics such as: age,
ethnicity, economical standing, geographical living area, etc. When a person
votes, he/she represents his or her connection to the community. When people
don't vote, policies and rules are slowly skewed away from the non-voters.
Furthermore, for an individual to combat corruption, challenge bad policies,
punish ineffective politicians or even reward good governments, an individual's
vote is the first and best step.
2. Be an educated voter. To
further reinforce a person's effectiveness of their vote, it is important for
them to be educated before they vote. Learn about the candidates' character,
explore their policies and action plans, and understand current issues.
3. Do not give out random votes
when voting on the ballot. When a voter is selecting members for Richmond City
Council, he/she has the right to cast 1-8 votes. However, when a voter has only
decided to vote for 6 candidates, it is important for the voter not to waste
his/her 2 unused votes on random candidates. Random votes not just increase the
chance for the person whom the voter did not know to win, but they also reduce
the chance for the person whom the voter wants to win the election. Remember,
in Richmond's City Council election, the top 8 candidates who receive the most
votes win. Therefore vote only for the candidates you want to win and use your
votes wisely.
4. It is also important for voters
to find a candidate who listens. A good candidate or political party that
listens will do what the voters encourage them to do. However, when money or
special interests replace a voter's voice, the democratic process suffers. It
is important for voters to find a candidate who listens and is not influenced
by special interests.
5. As an independent candidate who
is running for Richmond City Council, I sincerely hope to be the candidate whom
you can trust. If there are things I can do better or if there are
recommendations, please send them my way and I will read them all with a great
sense of respect and appreciation.
Thank you,
Henry Yao
Civic Engagement
Throughout all his work, Henry has focused on two core principles: the value of youth, and the effectiveness of trust-based delegation and interaction. Henry’s uncompromising outlook on what it means to be a leader is tightly bound to the idea of building relationships, hearing everyone’s opinions, and placing value in the ideals of democratic decision making. Nevertheless, Henry has a powerful voice that never fails to facilitate discussion, a leadership skill he has developed through working with over 3,000 young people over the past seven years alone. He also has a real admiration towards the effectiveness and dedication of the community. If elected, Henry will seek ways to increase government efficiency, empower the community, and foster a brighter future for Richmond.