Happy Election Day!

Why do you have a fake ID? …So I can vote.

In the movie, "The Breakfast Club," I’d be Brian, the nerdy character, who made himself a fake ID, so he could, duh, vote. I’m very excited about today, Election Day!

When I was younger, my dad used to take me to the polls and I got to pull the the little levers in the old voting machines. And if it was a low-profile race, say county board of supervisors, I got to pick the candidates. I even got to wear an “I voted” sticker.

Now, I’m all grown up and I get to go to the polls all by myself. Not only will I be voting for Iowa’s next governor and third-district representative, I also get to change my party affiliation.

Currently, I’m registered with the wrong party. I developed a soft sport for a candidate running in the primary elections this summer, so I switch my affiliation to vote for him. I never bothered to switch back, which has turned in to an annoying mistake. I can handle the pre-recorded phone calls from party leaders, but I’ve gotten two live calls that have been slightly awkward.

I received the first call a week ago. That Other Party wanted me to volunteer because this election is a team effort. I didn’t bother to say I was rooting for the other team. Instead I told him The Des Moines Register doesn’t allow its newsroom employees to openly support a political party or candidate. That means no volunteering. No campaign donations. No yard signs. I don’t think he believed me, but oh, well. Seriously, it’s true. It goes along those lines of the newspaper being unbiased. So, just because the Opinion people want a Democrat for governor and four Democrats to represent Iowa in the House of Representatives, doesn’t mean the rest of the paper is trying to push that stance. Democrats.

On Sunday, a woman called and asked if That Other Candidate could count on my vote. I cringed as finished her question because I knew what was coming and I didn’t know how to answer. She sounded so nice, so I blurted out “Sure!”

So I screwed up That Other’s Guy’s poll. Oops. Today it’s meaningless because in the voting booth, it’s just you and the ballot. Choose wisely.

Register's voting guide

Aside from the endorsements, here is a non-partisan Web site to help you figure out where to vote, and if you need it, whom to vote for. The information doesn't judge the candidates, it just tells you where the politicans stand on issues important to you.