Now or Never

By Joanie Juster—

This is it, folks. The election we’ve been working toward for two years is now less than two weeks away. The big question is whether it will count.

Every election is important, but this one, especially at the federal level, literally holds the opportunity to begin reclaiming our country and undoing some of the massive amounts of damage that has been wrought since January 2025. In less than two years our government has been thoroughly overhauled and reshaped to consolidate power into the hands of a small number of people who have rendered our country nearly unrecognizable. It is mind-boggling to look back at the last twenty-one months and realize how much has changed, how much has been destroyed, how much has been lost. Each loss was horrifying, unthinkable, and deeply painful as it happened; looking back at the cumulative damage is both heartbreaking and infuriating.

Do we have the collective courage and power to take our country back? And even if we do have the collective courage and power, will our efforts succeed?

We have been made to feel helpless as the party-in-charge has consolidated their power and run roughshod over long-standing rules, societal norms, and even laws. When I was a kid, Godzilla haunted my dreams—the enormous monster that trampled everything in its path. Our current president acts like a modern Godzilla, destroying everything he touches, caring for nothing but his own enrichment and glory. Concerned only with what he can gain, he breaks, tarnishes, and destroys everything in sight, from the natural environment to the White House itself. Nothing is sacred; everything is up for grabs, from ancient trees to our national monuments to our very freedom and security. Traditional allies have been insulted, spurned, cast aside, while traditional adversaries—the ones who practice authoritarianism, brutality, and fascism in their own countries—have been cozied up to, flattered, and emulated. Our country, and the world itself, has become a much more dangerous place because of their overreach.

It has been depressing as hell, and both physically and spiritually exhausting. We have had to spend all our spare time, energy, and money fighting: fighting fascism, fighting the disappearance of our freedoms, fighting for the safety of our immigrant neighbors, fighting the incessant attacks on the rule of law, fighting against the erasure of our history, fighting against the attacks on transgender family and friends, fighting against the attacks on our bodily autonomy, fighting against sheer stupidity and greed and evil. I’m tired just thinking about all we have been fighting against.

But the result of all that fighting isn’t just exhaustion. We haven’t just been fighting against something. We have been fighting for the things that mean most to us, as individuals, and as a country. We have been fighting for honor, and dignity, and justice. We have been fighting for our values, for our Constitution, for our country, for our freedom, for our lives. And all that fighting has built us up: we have built muscles, and we have built community. We have found people and groups, both online and in real life, whom we know we can trust. We know we are not alone. So now is the time to rise up and use those muscles to take back our country.

One of the core principles of the United States of America is the peaceful transfer of power, a principle that has stood as a sacred trust from George Washington until January 6, 2021. We are now facing an election in which the ruling party has openly declared they have no intention of losing. They are brazenly threatening to use every possible tactic to interfere with the election cycle to ensure their own victory. We must be prepared for the worst, including the very real possibility that they may simply refuse to certify the results of the elections if they don’t go their way. Things could get ugly. We may be entering uncharted territory.

So, what can we do?

For months we have been advising everyone not only to vote, but also to vote early, and vote safely. If you haven’t voted yet, there is still time, but please do not drop your ballot into a mailbox. The president’s minions have made it quite clear they are planning to make mischief with the mail, so either vote in person, or drop your ballot in an official ballot drop box. Putting up substantial voting numbers prior to Election Day not only creates a considerable psychological advantage, but also takes power away from the billionaires who are spending obscene amounts of money in their attempts to buy your vote.

Have friends who need help voting? Offer to help them to the polls, or to the ballot drop box. Use your voice to encourage everyone you know to vote. Study your voter guides. Learn about the issues and candidates not just on the federal level, but on the state and local level. Get involved. Flex those muscles we have built. Speak out. Get involved. And be prepared to keep fighting even after the election.

In 2016, many potential voters stayed home, finding both major candidates distasteful. Those nonvoters, both in 2016 and in 2024, handed us our current president. We cannot afford to have that happen again. Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri reported that after the 2016 election she heard from many women who said, “I just assumed he wouldn’t win.” Over and over she heard, “I could have done more. I should have done more.”

Let’s not be left with that kind of regret again. Let’s do more. It’s now or never.

Joanie Juster is a long-time community volunteer, activist, and ally.

In Case You Missed It
Published on October 22, 2026