The upcoming Presidential election is about far more than the future of our ever-evolving democracy.

Due to America’s outsized influence on outcomes worldwide, the next election will directly impact our ability to control our own bodies and destinies; worldwide strategies for addressing massive global migration, inequality, and hardship and the rate of global warming and accelerating ecological disaster. Will we embrace fear and accept divisive falsehoods that include everything from the “transgender menace” to immigrants stealing our jobs and making homes unaffordable, or will we champion community, rationality, equanimity, and fearlessness by together addressing challenges that include over-population, diminishing resources, and demagogues run amuck?

I reject the notion that choosing between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris requires voting for the “lesser of two evils.” Trump represents much of what the Judeo-Christian Bible warns us against. An unapologetic misogynist, rapist, thief, pathological liar, and self-aggrandizer who calls people names and turns on anyone who will not accept his grossly incompetent and uninformed pronouncements, he urges people to worship at a Calf of Gold (himself) and the multiple golden towers and palaces that, on paper at least, he calls his own.

Which is not to say that Harris is an angel. As much as she urges us to unite in joyfully celebration of the greatness within ourselves, she is also an avowed capitalist who, like Biden, will do everything in her power to maintain an American Empire that’s built on stolen lands, and whose corporations profit from theft, exploitation, and inequality.

Nonetheless, Harris champions personal autonomy, our rights to control our own bodies and destinies, and the diversity that makes America great. The daughter of a highly educated Indian mother and equally accomplished Jamaican father, she attended civil rights marches as a toddler. She actively opposes the evils of slavery, racism, religious bigotry, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and a whole lot more. Those are hardly the underpinnings of an evil person.

Perfect Harris may not be, but she embraces the big picture rather than viewing everything through the twin lenses of personal profit and omnipotent perfection. That, to me, is not the lesser of two evils; it is a path forward out of the darkness, chaos, and unfathomable suffering that another Trump era will surely create. If you don’t think so, look past J.D. Vance’s well-rehearsed “kindler / gentler” demeanor at the recent V.P. debate, and witness his and Trump’s accelerating campaign of personal attacks and lies. Then, contemplate how far two desperate would-be demagogues will go—how many people and living things they will gladly sacrifice—to avoid looking in the mirror and owning up to their contradictions, failings, and weaknesses.

What about “voting my conscience” via a third-party candidate? After all, popular wisdom declares that Washington will inevitably go Democratic.

As much as I wish there were a viable third-party presidential candidate, there is none. Kennedy, who willingly sold his soul to Trump after he and his dead bear were rejected by Harris, is a joke, and no one else can possibly win. Voting for someone other than Harris or Trump is tantamount to throwing away your vote.

Nor can outcomes in Washington state be taken for granted. In 2004, Gov. Christine Gregoire beat Dino Rossi by 133 votes after two recounts. Gov. Jay Inslee’s first election was also very close. David Stanko won our local Sheriff’s race in 2014 by less than 1%, and WA Representative Evan “Landslide” Jones won his seat in 1990 by .01%. (Thanks for the research, Bruce Cowan.) Donald Trump may have won the Electoral College in 2016, but Hillary Clinton won the popular vote. That outcome was vital, because it proved who is in the actual majority. Every vote counts.

The 2024 election is not a case of “vote as if your life depended upon it.” Your life does depend on it. Even if you’re not first in the line of fire—pregnant women, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, people of color, and the poor are — the American Dream, global prosperity, and species too numerous to count are on the verge of permanent erasure. If you love your neighbor, if you love the whales, if you strive to honor all life as you strive to honor yourself, you must vote. 

I end with heartening news. For the first time in its history, the Washington State LGBTQ Commission will meet in Port Townsend. For the location of our business meeting on Friday, Oct. 18, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., see tinyurl.com/35nrnx5m]. Public comment starts 4:30 p.m.

Saturday brings our first LGBTQ Plenary, “Honoring the Past, Shaping the Future.” This event, which runs from 12-1:30 p.m., features a panel discussion to celebrate 2SLGBTQIA+ History Month and center the voices and experiences of our Commissioners and Youth Advisory Council members. I’ll introduce the speakers. Pre-registration is requested.

Jason Victor Serinus is a critic of culture, music, and audio. A longtime advocate for rights, equality, and freedom, he is also a professional whistler. Column tips: jvsaisi24@gmail.com