I Hate When People Ask, "Are You Going to Vote?"

Yesterday was the New York primary, and despite this momentous day, I did not vote. Simply because I felt ill-prepared on making an informed decision on the Democratic candidates. As everyone around me discussed who they were voting for and why I should be voting, I couldn't help but feel annoyed and confused. I thought, why do you care if I vote or not and what if I like both Bernie and Hillary?

When I quickly polled my friends via text to see who actually voted, most said they either didn't have time to vote, forgot to register with a party, or, like me, felt like they didn't know enough about politics and the candidates to make an informed decision. The latter excuse is perhaps the most honest, but I also admit it's an easy out. As someone who works in media and follows the news, it's kind of impossible for me to not know what is happening in this year's elections.

Why then do I still view it as a confusing maze to be navigated? I think one reason is because there's too much information out there and not enough time to actually consume all of it. To combat this, I find it helpful to save links on the side to read when I do have time and I always look for stories that give a concise coverage on political events. It's also quite difficult to fully support a candidate when you don't completely understand the history behind their political careers. And if their career spans over a decade or more, this could take some time to read up on. I bought Hillary Clinton's book Living History and I'm still stuck on page 11 because the memoir is dense with information. On top of all this, you still have to sift through the influx of fresh news about the candidates every day while deciphering what about the story matters to you. But over time, hopefully with the more knowledge you have, the easier it is to digest all this political news.

As cliché as it sounds, I know that every vote might count and as a 20-something, our voices in this year's election can shape our future. But I'm not one to put my trust in someone I don't know enough about, so for me that means skipping the vote in the primary but making sure to read up on the candidates and be more confident in my decision come November in the general election.

So, instead of asking, "Are you going to vote?", the real question should be, "Why are you voting?" And once you can personally answer this, then you're ready to cast your ballot. For anyone like me who's wondering how to follow politics in a more digestible way, there are great podcasts out there and stories that get right to the meat of the topic to help you become an informed voter during this year's election.

Marina Liao is an editorial assistant who writes across all POPSUGAR sites.