With the 2022 midterm elections mere days away, those of us who love to fish, or who otherwise enjoy the great outdoors, need to decide who to support with our votes. Sadly, it’s becoming harder and harder for many of us to differentiate good candidates — those who embrace our values — from poor candidates trying to camouflage their motives and intentions.

Depending on the media platforms you follow, and depending on whether you consider yourself an Independent, a Republican or a Democrat, there are any number of issues, from inflation and the economy, to immigration and climate change, to election integrity and democracy itself, that may influence your choices.

To help break through the political noise that fills our air waves and makes it so hard to separate truth from falsehood, we’ve put together a simple voter’s guide that will help you make the best possible choices at the polls this November.

Here are our suggestions for the 2022 midterm election.

Vote for:

1. Candidates who embrace the tenets of conservation and stewardship.
2. Candidates who display a firm grasp of the issues.
3. Candidates who share concrete plans rather than vague generalities.
4. Candidates who base their decisions on facts and science.
5. Candidates who support policies that benefit everyday, working class American men and women.

Vote against:

1. Candidates who say that they won’t accept the election results unless they win.
2. Candidates who embrace racism, sexism, xenophobia or anti-semitism.
3. Candidates who claim that they are the only ones who can fix our problems.
4. Candidates who rely on grievance or negativity.
5. Candidates who cast blame rather than accepting responsibility.

Tiebreakers:
If everything else seems equal, or if you’re having a hard time making up your mind on who to choose in 2022, we suggest that you vote for candidates who actively support clean water protections and strong conservation values.

Every citizen has an obligation and responsibility to vote. If we hope to enjoy healthy landscapes and productive fisheries, and if we want to preserve our representative democracy, then we need to educate ourselves and make wise choices at the ballot box in 2022.