There are a variety of candidates from the federal, state, and local levels of government on the ballot. In addition to constitutional amendments and local referendums, there may be another question on the minds of some voters. The General Election of 2024 has certainly attracted its fair share of attention. And for sure, the top of the ticket has garnered a lot of that. Some voters believe democracy itself is on the ballot. In Lexington, Rick Rutledge is concerned about that. “Oh I believe it. I was ten years in the military. And I’ve never seen people act like they act today or be as divided as they are today. You never thought you’d see this,” said Rutledge. Rutledge said he can’t believe the difference in the political parties, compared to what he grew up with. Leah Burus is casting her first vote in a presidential election. Here’s her take when asked if she feels democracy is threatened these days. “I don’t think so. I think that the presidential election could go either way and I think that they will have their own ways of doing things, but I don’t necessarily think that the democracy will go anywhere. I think the people of the United States will do well enough to make sure everything stays how it should be,” said Burus. Out of a very small sample, three Lexington voters felt democracy is threatened and three indicated no. In southwest Lexington, Heather Damron said it is “one of the most important elections we’ll see in our lifetime.” Damron said she encouraged all her friends to come out and vote. She also felt it important to send a message within her own family. “The right of passage for women to vote. I have three daughters. It is really important for me to kind of lead by example so. And for me, it’s personal choice and I think everybody needs to take advantage and no matter who they vote for, just need to come out and vote,” said Damron. Over at Tates Creek High School, Sean Samuels said he supported school choice, but said he’s voting for a school board member opposed to choice. He feels making schools compete makes them better. He had a quick reaction when asked if democracy is threatened. “No, I don’t believe that. A lot of people like to say that to criticize the other side, but I don’t believe that. I believe we’ll survive either candidate. I think that’s just nonsense,” said Samuels. At the same precinct, Lavitica Brooks responded, in a way she does see democracy at risk. She said reading the Project 2025 document it brings up a lot of issues for a lot of people, adding she didn’t think it was a good way to go. Brooks accompanied her daughter who was voting for the first time. And Brooks said she felt it important to show her that her vote does matter. ** WEKU is working hard to be a leading source for public service, and fact-based journalism. Monthly supporters are the top funding source for this growing nonprofit news organization. Please join others in your community who support WEKU by making your donation. The post Lexington area voters’ opinions vary on ‘risk to democracy’ question appeared first on The Lexington Times.