Entering politics made me lose faith in it

In 2016, I and many young liberal Americans were energized to support the presidential candidacy of Bernie Sanders. He spoke truth to power and corporate interests in a way that was and is foreign in the popular media landscape. But he was also unsurprisingly shunned by the Democratic establishment in favor of Hillary Clinton. For the likes of me, we had already lost by the time the race was between Clinton and Trump. Still, I voted for Clinton and felt defeated when Trump won the presidency. Clinton was a continuation, but Trump was/is a wolf masked as a savior, with even less intention of doing anything other than what favors him and his peers.

In that disheartened moment, Bernie's calls for progress continued, and one weekend I got a message from his campaign encouraging supporters to sign up for ADEM Elections - a role to represent my assembly district in the California Democratic Party. A bit of impulsive rage and blind optimism got the best of me, and so I signed up.

The elections took place in person. There were speeches and voting within the course of a few hours. And although nervous, I spoke with the idealism and anger of a young liberal and surprisingly won the favor of the crowd. Just like that, I was elected, and soon I would be joining countless gatherings and meeting hopeful candidates for city council, assembly, and Congress. We represented our district, and our opinion mattered in helping determine which candidates the party would endorse.

Yet with each meeting and encounter and convention, the realization dawned on me more and more. This role, this organization, these meetings, and candidates, were not about right policy for the wellness of the population. These were meetings about one thing: winning. That's all that mattered - the strategy, the candidate, the veneer that could win. There was never, ever any discussion of policy. It was clear: we were right, they were wrong, and let's focus on the game instead of getting in the weeds of it.

To be fair, I am idealistic and arguably naive. But choosing between two parties that are more focused on beating each other than discussing and evolving policy that could actually solve problems is not a worthwhile endeavor in my eyes.

Sadly, I lost much of my interest in politics, or rather politicians, parties, and the games of elections. Yet, there are politicians like Bernie who I even now see as holding true to their role. And I do believe that opting out of politics is not an option, and that some officials have a greater understanding of ethics than others. If I were in the U.S., I would have begrudgingly voted for Harris.

Nevertheless, it is more clear to me now than ever that the real power of change rests with the people demanding it. When we see through the show and demand what we want, really demand it, those in power have no choice but to abide. But the game, the parties, choosing between Coke and Pepsi, instead of focusing on actual policy, is the damn tragedy that continues to haunt the hope of progress.

Wishing you well,

Naser