Holt wants to hear from 12th District residents

Following my election to a third term in Congress (now representing a slightly re-drawn district), I want to thank those who voted for me and otherwise supported my election.

I am grateful for the trust placed in me as your representative, and I will continue to work to earn it.

Although I received the largest vote percentage I have yet received and carried 456 of 531 district precincts, it is humbling to know that, as with most elected officials, far more people did not vote for me than did, considering the majority of residents who do not vote in elections, as well as children, permanent residents, and others ineligible.

That serves as a reminder to those of us who seek to cultivate our democracy that we must work continually to make our actions relevant to the daily lives of people and to build each resident’s sense of personal connection to his or her government. Those less privileged especially need to be given a sense that it is their government, too.

I also want to assure you I regard the election as the beginning of a process, not the end.

Too many people view elections as the culmination, the prize at the end of the political game.

However, elections are really about the future.

The voters have given me another two-year charge to cultivate our system of self-government and to develop a vision for how we should be growing with respect to issues of war and peace, opportunity and restraint, and liberty and oppression.

To succeed fully, I must hear from the residents of the 12th District — those who voted for me and those who did not.

I encourage you to contact me toll free at 1-877-874-4658 or e-mail my Web site at www.house.gov/rholt.

Representative Rush Holt

D-12th District