Your mailbox is full. Your answering machine is swamped.

And sadly, it's not the parents offering some extra cash.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to election season!

Commonly, during presidential election years, the focus is heavy on the national candidates that campaign across the country for your vote. But there are also other people on the ballot.

Congressmen and women, state representatives and local council members are also vying for a seat in order to serve you. But unfortunately, many students are overlooking their closest governmental representation.

In fact, day-to-day, the president of the United States really doesn't have a direct impact on your life. General Assembly members and regional councils do, however. And these people are more likely to listen to you and pass your opinion on to their body.

Among other things, these people make important decisions on how much you get taxed, where and what type of buildings can develop, how much money will be given out for public recreation and government facilities and implementing plans for snow removal and leaf collection.

Most importantly, they have an input on your tuition.

And unlike national representatives, local officials are willing to speak with you about issues in your backyard that may concern you directly -- ones that the president would never be familiar with.

Instead of voting along party lines, which may not be as important locally, citizens need to be informed about what their local representation has done in the past.

Even if you haven't heard of the candidate, it's important to find out about their background and what they intend to do to serve the community.

By reading the newspaper, researching voting records or simply "Googling" people on your absentee ballot, you can find a plethora of information available to help make your decision on who to vote for in your local districts.

If you don't investigate a candidate's background and just vote blindly along partisan lines, or by whose name you saw more often, you may see legislation enacted that you're against.

This defeats the point of a democracy, doesn't it?

Unquestionably, it is worth the extra 20 minutes to know who you are actually voting for.

Instead of being apathetic by just concentrating on George W. Bush and John Kerry, everybody should take a closer look at our neighbors and fellow community members who serve us.